Trova Trot
by HartFamily
Summary: Amara. Tatia. Katherine. Elena. Different and the same. The Travelers struck up a bargain and now have the chance to mold them to their liking. However, as the girls grow up together their sisterly bond takes precedent. Of course an ancient prophecy is involved, new friends, enemies, and loves, as well as old come to the rescue but this time maybe they'll fight back. REWRITING!
1. It Was The Best Of Times

Tatia comes first. Surprisingly so, since the young couple know that Amara should be the first one to appear. That's who they are expecting when the little bundle of joy appears in the witch's circle, bonded by Traveler magic. However, when the little blanket with a note that shows deep red writing specifically signs, Tatiana Inkeri Aslog Petrova, nestled in with the baby inside, the couple gives eachother one glance and just accepts what fate has handed them. Perhaps it's a fluke.

Ekaterina Iskra Petrova comes next. What the couple observes though is that the young child that had been described to them as selfish and at times ruthless seems a bit... incomplete? They can't quite put their finger on it, but Kat doesn't quite act like she's whole. In fact, she's the exact opposite of the all but legendary Katherine Pierce they had heard so much about. Maybe it's because her humanity is still intact but that still doesn't explain why she seems a bit off. At least not for a while, not until the next one comes. That's okay though because she has Tatia to watch over her and they seem to get along almost like sisters.

They soon find that it must have something to do with the fact that Kat's vampire form is still roaming throughout life because Elena Becky Gilbert- now Petrova is the same. She's how they expect a girl who has just been reborn with no recollection of her past life to act. Elena, like Kat, is all there just not whole. Ironically enough, Kat becomes complete before Elena does. A scary thing to think about but true.

The one that they had been waiting on first, Amarantha Zoe Despoina Petrova, comes last. She's just a bit smaller, they think, and maybe that's just what makes her a bit grander. Amara's a relief, one they thought they were never expecting.

When Nina decided to volunteer her and her husband, Tony, for the reincarnate spell the Traveler's had been trying to prefect for hundreds years (for the Petrova line of course, which is always made much harder when working with that group of subjects) she's surprised that they are the only volunteers. Nina thinks it's because of the reputation the Petrova's have built for themselves that makes people wary. Tony on the other hand is a bit miffed himself that Nina signed them up but he tries not to let it show. The counsel allows it because Nina herself was a Petrova that they had groomed which is easy to forget since she's the only one to date to make it past the age of 19.

When the ceremony begins Tony and herself are aware the aging process will slow tremendously for the girls so that they can grow together and at the same time rather than apart. Still when the girls are all together for the first time it's like staring at identical quadruplets. Tony does a double take when Nina decides to stand behind four four year olds and they all look like they could one day grow up to be her. She knows he's mad that now they will forever have a target on their back but the moment they each first call him Daddy he doesn't care.

The girls are different. The same but definitely different. Like sisters to be. Amara is the meek one of them all and definitely the quiet one as well. As she grows her fashion sense expresses pleated skirts nice blouses and cute sweaters and wavy wind blown locks. Tatia is more outgoing and adventerous with little ringlet curls to set her apart. She sides with sports wear or shorts, a couple of layered tank tops and the occasional hoodie. Kat is persistent, daring, and playful. The girl can't get enough of what's the latest in high fashion and often goes for the more thrifty and expensive stuff her hair is in big curls. Elena enjoys close long sleeved shirts jeans and a jacket with her pin straight hair. Elena is sweet, compassionate, and sometimes a bit influenced by her sisters but she is the youngest. Growing up together is different Nina thinks. The girls have bonds. One's that don't involve sacrificing one another or the willingness to kill. When people ask if they are quadruplets Nina just says yes if asked who's the oldest Tony will go in order of how they came to them: Tatia, Kat, Elena, Amara, it's easier that way. They truly are a blessing.

* * *

"Oomph!" Kat grunts as a pillow is thrown ontop of her 8 year old head. Moving it to try and take a look at who threw it in their room (Mommy and Daddy insist that they share a room, the giant attic, until they move out, which Kat doesn't mind but she wants to buy lots of pretty shoes like the ones mommy wears and Amara's corner of the room has lots of space so...) Kat sees Tatia covering her laugh in front of her. Kat pretends to be grumpy but Tatia knows her sister. She's already trying to hide her playful smile and cover herself up again in the pillows and blankets.

"Go away Tatia," Kat says from underneath the pillows trying to get comfortable once more. "It's too early."

Tatia giggles at this. "Elena and Amara are already up."

Kat throws her arms up from underneath the covers dramatically. "Crazies!" Then she is still. Elena and Amara dash over to look down at their sister. "Come on Kat, you've been asleep forever." Amara says poking at her sister's foot.

"Are Mommy and Daddy up?" she says muffled by the mattress.

"Well..." Elena trails off.

"Then neither am I."

The three girls look at eachother then all at once they get an idea. "Fine." Tatia says with knowing smile.

"Yep." Amara nodds her head.

Elena leans in so that Kat can hear her clearly. "We'll just tell Erin Mavens not to come over today."

Suddenly Kat is jolted up in a flash. "That's today!" and the girls are laughing up a storm on the floor.

Kat gives them a mock glare before she decides to play with them. "Oh well I guess I'm just going have to play with Nathan, Darien, and Skylar instead!" She laughs running away. The girls eyes go wide.

"Kat!"

Alls they hear is a giggle. "Catch me, if you can!" and the others take off running and laughing too.

* * *

When the girls are in middle school they decide summer is the best time to stay up and gossip into all hours of the night. That's fine with their parents, their room is on the ground floor. It unsettles Nina though that her daughters (when she stopped thinking of them as the ones she has to protect and started thinking of them as her own flesh and blood she'll never know) have nostalgic love for men that they've never met, or at least have once before in a time that they can't remember. She finds this out when she goes to tell them goodnight.

"Okay, dream guy?"

"Oh Kat why do you always ask us to play these things?" Amara says on her bed on the other side of the room.

"Because games are fun." She says laying on her stomach looking at her magazine but not truly reading it. "Guess you don't have him in your head yet so we won't start with you. Elena?"

"Easy. Dark, handsome, and a bit of bad boy but still would do anything for me."

Kat groans. "Too predictable. I'd get bored _so_ fast. I'm not talking about dream guy you're _in like_ with. I'm talking _in love_. Back me up Tatia?" The girl hesitates. "Tatia!" Kat gasps.

"I don't know I kind of think mine is similar to Elena's. Except my dream guy is misunderstood but still looking for the better things in life,"

Kat smirks. "You?"

Tatia shruggs. "Maybe. He's all about keeping his loved ones close, a family man you know? But he's dark in a way that he once was light."

A sigh escapes Amara. "Ooo, someone's found her description." Kat taunts. "Tell us!"

"I want someone who would be faithful," Amara tells them staring up at the ceiling "Who'd want to be with me until the end of time."

"I guess that's nice." Kat says nonchalantly.

Amara becomes curious. "What's your dream guy Kat?"

Kat is dead silent. For a moment Nina tries to distinguish how reincarnation works along with Traveler's magic. It's been awhile since the vampire Katherine Pierce died in the Salvator house (word gets around quick when you're a Traveler) and now that makes Kat complete. Nina figures that Kat and Elena didn't start out complete because they died and came back as vampires. It's not like they were transparent or anything, it was just the energy about them. They didn't notice it but it seemed subtle maybe even a a bit subdued to others around them. To a normal human they'd think that they were perfectly fine but anyone exposed to the supernatural they'd see _something_. Elena's not whole yet but that might take some time. After all the Elena Gilbert in Mystic Falls is very intent on living her vampire years to the fullest. Kat on the other hand is now complete and in being so it is often hard to tell how much of her is Katerina Petrova and how much of her is Katherine Pierce. Nina hopes the best of both and she has a suspicion that that's how it is.

Finally Kat speaks but uncharacteristically soft. "I want a knight. Nobel and gallant with every intention of loving the good and the bad parts of me. Someone to chase me to the ends of the earth through time."

Nina's heart stops. She knows that not one of her daughters has any recollection of their past lives but that it still lingers at the edge of their brain, walking the thin tightrope, hoping to fall over and back into their lives. Ironically all the girls sigh at once and it is then Nina decides to let herself in.

"Alrighty girls, I'm saying goodnight."

Cheerfully forgetting the men that struck through their hearts harder than the greatest of tragedies the girls answer back. "Goodnight!"

* * *

The first time Tony is home with the girls since they started having fluent conversations in other lauguages(in Greek/Latin, Bulgarian, Old Norse/North Germanic, and English. His wife insists that they be fluent in all of those, which they naturally are.) is when Tony has a day off and so do the girls from school. They. Will. Drive. Him. Insane. They don't look like it and seem like it but his daughters are somewhat of natural little schemers.

Nina is at work so he decides today is a good day as ever to work on making sure the the house is secure. However trying to do that with four little girls constantly wanting his attention can be a bit of a hassle.

It starts when he's making breakfast. Talking on the phone, making waffles, and bacon and sausage, Tony doesn't hear the pitter patter of little feet piling into the kitchen. It's not until he sees them all sit down on the stools at the kitchen counter that he starts trying to shorten his sentences to one word answers. He sees how they are trying to be nonchalant about not listening in but knowing them they're just too curious. Tony is talking to the right hand witch who will relay anything involving security measures to the Traveler in charge of keeping them under the radar.

"So everything's in secure?" He asks into the phone glancing at the girls from the corner of his eye.

Kat voiced her opinion. "Wow, those waffles sure smell good, right girls?" They all nodded in confirmation.

"Don't worry, the Traveler's and my clan are doing everything we can."

"I'm sure the meat is good too." Tatia sighed in impatience.

Tony half turns so that he can whisper. "You're sure?"

"Daddy, I'm ready for some of those waffles now." His daughter in pink nightgown says with a smile as if to tell him that they are all becoming hungry and impatient and if it's Elena who has to tell him this then he knows the other girls are ready to eat too.

"Trust me the spells are perfectly binding, besides who could possibly want to find them? They already think they're dead."

" _ **Daddy!**_ " Amara demanded to be fed...he was in serious trouble if his most quiet daughter was screeching.

"Trust me, they are very much alive. I'll call you later." and with that Tony hung up. Turning to his daughters in question, they all had some form of annoyance written in their body language. Amara was refusing to look at him, choosing to glare at the cabinet right next to him instead, with a tense stature. Tatia was twirling a piece of her hair looking directly at him with a sour face. Kat had one hand holding up her head while the other tapped her fingers on the counter top looking bored as ever. Elena had crossed her arms and just seemed too huffy.

Tony sighed trying to imagine how their actual parents (well Elena's really only half counted) had dealt with just one little Petrova. Wasn't it enough that Tony married one? After all, Nina was a handful when she was mad at him but dealing with four mini Petrova's? His brain explodes about twice as much at the end of each day.

Remembering about the food an idea popped into Tony's head. "Well _my_ breakfast is ready." He told them grabbing the plate of ten waffles and stacks of bacon and sausage and trying to walk to his bedroom. "I wonder what my girls are going to eat?" He mused out loud.

" _Daddy!_ " They all laughed and ran past him, piling on the bed and turning on the TV to watch cartoons.

Tony just laughed. Maybe today wouldn't be so headache inducing...yeah right!

* * *

When Elena and Kat have their first big fight, it's not what anyone expects. The other Travelers insist on knowing any and all new developments pertaining the girls but some red flags that they had warned Nina and Tony about before hand was the girls methods of anger. Specifically, Kat and Elena's. The fight itself perplexes the family. It's not about boys or integrity, or style or deceit. In fact, no one even realizes they're in a fight, Elena included, until Kat pushes her away.

They are playing outside and before Nina knows it she hears Kat's voice. "NO!"

Running out of the kitchen to see what is happening in the back, Nina expects the worst. What she sees is ten times more daunting. Kat is on the ground with angry tears streaming down her face as Elena stands off to the side watching with a face mixed with hurt, worry, and sympathy for her sister. Nina stands off to the distance taking in the scene in front of her, feeling as though neither one of her daughters have truly processed that she is there yet.

"I...I'm...I'm sorry Kat!" Elena's voice climbs higher as Kat's tears flow more freely. "Kat?"

Elena tries to get closer but her sister stops her. " _Stay back!_ " Kat yells. Looking up into identical eyes she whispers it this time. "Stay back."

The younger Petrova stays where she is but falls down to the ground so that she can be on the same level as her sister. Nina watches the exchange feeling everything that her and Tony have come so far for break down before her very eyes. "Kat?" Elena whispers in a surprisingly calm tone. "What happened?"

Katerina, or Katherine, at that moment Nina can't distinguish the difference, doesn't speak. It comes to Nina that the whole reason everyone calls her Kat is because she was one of the most fascinatingly confusing dopplegangers in existence. For only Katherine would have the gull to put up a fight, maybe even slap her own sister (Nina now sees a red pulsing and fading mark in the shape of a hand on Elena's identical face) but only Katerina could have the will to break down and feel remorse for her sins.

"I hurt you." Kat whimpers.

"I know Kat, but I forgive yo-"

"No, Elena!" Kat commands. Taking a deep breath she admits what really is churning this turbulent storm. "I...I saw myself trying to _kill_ _you_ , Elena. So I had to keep you away, so I hurt you..." She trailed off emitting shame throughout her body language.

Elena seems to be mulling this over in her head, trying to find the right words. "But you didn't," The younger girl looks to her older sister in hope. "and I'm still here." Inching forward so that they are now a foot from one another Elena sends a little smile as if to say _**This is going to happen but we're sisters**_. "Please, keep us in?"

Nina doesn't know why but the power of those words cause her daughters to embrace into a crying smiling hug filled with giggles of secret understanding. Letting herself be known it dawns on Nina that this is something that is far from over but it's not she or Tony who will be the ones to resolve it but her children. "Girls, lunch is ready."

Kat sniffles rubbing her eyes with a grin on her face, "Okay." Helping her younger sister up the two nine year olds all but skip into the kitchen as if it never happened. For a moment Nina almost believes it never was.

* * *

Tony observes how multi-talented his daughters are. It hits him like a brick as they prepare to end there last year of middle school and transition in becoming high schoolers but before that happens they need to survive summer vacation, or more likely, _he_ does. Pillow fights and staying up until the next day call for Nina and Tony sleeping less with four different but still dependent girls. It's not until September rolls around that it dawns on Tony that this is around the time that the Travelers wish to see the girls progression.

They send one wolf, two vampires, a human, and one very knowledgeable witch. Tony and Nina put on the impression that they are old friends of theirs that are visiting and want to formally meet the girls. It's not that long of a stretch since though Nina is not an official Traveler, she had been groomed by them and had grown up knowing these people herself, and from what Tony can tell when they arrive they are quite a friendly bunch. Putting up formalities with simple discussions of whether Nina has talked to this person or if she had seen a recent picture of that, even bringing up little instances and occurrences but from what Tony can tell they just all grew up together, well the vampires certainly not but they were all very understanding.

The wolf's name is Danjou. Young looking, funny, charming, a little bit full of himself but from what Nina retorts back out, Tony can tell that Danjou has others well beings in mind and it's all really just for show. He's the Gamma of his pack, Nina tells him before hand and acting as so he is the rock. Not in charge like the Alpha, isn't critical like the Beta, won't settle for babying or in need of protection as the Omega, no he's the one that sees things for what they truly are, keeping his pact grounded even if he has to mask it with arrogance or comedy. For that Tony feels a small respect for Danjou.

Tony has had experience with vampires before. Often they are young restless things with lost or old souls. These ones Tony does not expect. One looks to be a 15 year old but Nina explains Sophie is older than Nina's own grandmother. However, Tony doesn't believe it until he sees her eyes. The petite long haired redhead looks entirely childish except her eyes held a worn look and she carries herself as if you should be saying "madame" every time she walks into the room. Her husband is very much older in the age in which he was turned than her but Nina quips was always the more childish one. Tony shakes his head at the thought that Colin had the age appearance of Tony, 30, and Sophie always presented herself as his daughter to those unaware to the supernatural world. Still it made Tony shiver at the notion.

The human's name is Mike he's a mid 50 year old that gives off the permanently grumpy vibe. Right off the bat, Tony doesn't like him for words he can't express but maybe it's because of the way he lingers on Nina's face when she's done speaking or how he kisses her hand a beat longer than necessary. Whatever. Tony doesn't think his opinion will matter too much anyway.

Anabel is the youngest of the group but already a powerful little witch who just so happens to be the same age as the girls. She's cute and sweet and very polite reminding Tony of Nina's neighbor Kayla who popped in once to check up on things. He's actually quite surprised that Anabel is able to be so quiet and unseen until she talks. With the giant blond braid falling down her shoulder Tony was actually startled when she appeared suddenly but no one else seemed to jump so she must have been there all along.

When everyone is settled in Nina calls the girls out to tell them about one another. Tony doesn't take in just how much each one of his daughters does until he hears it from their mouths himself. However that's not what _they_ are looking for. They look for signs of something, something that Tony can't pinpoint himself. They ask questions that seem irrelavent to the supernatural community all together and yet Tony himself wonders how the girls don't find it suspicious. When it comes close to the end Nina exclaims to the girls that her friends must leave now but that they will be coming back someday to see them again.

Walking out with the peculiar group and his wife Tony feels a strange daunting sense of pressure is about to be put on his shoulders. So when Danjou speaks with clarity and confidence, Tony feels the lull of dread. "The eldest will inherit the blood of wolf, changing every night as the moon fills the sky full and bright. She will suffer the lest and most have control like no other but I fear for her heart."

Mike speaks next with a lack of interest as if he'd done this a thousand times over. "The youngest holds an ability long thought to be locked away. Sniffed out by the damned, coveted by the unrighteous, and considered insane by the nonbelievers. Her pain will bring others rest, her happiness will bring a dark force to light, and her distraught and confusion will serve as a path that she will pave to make others and herself stronger."

Finally the vampires and the tiny witch collaborated. "The two in the middle were hard to read." Colin explains.

Sophie nods in agreement. "There is a fine line between what is thought to be destroyers and judges, abominations and saviors,"

Anabel stepped in. "But we believe that those two will ultimately choose their destiny themselves."

"The bond of sisters is greater than any group, pack, clan, or coven to ever face this earth." Sophie reminds them all. "It will be interesting to see how, they themselves, would have been each others downfall and yet still will be, along with being one another's own protectors. We sincerely apologize for bestowing on you both the knowledge of their destruction and the impending doom that they could eventually bring about to the Earth itself and we hope that you make it through. Good night." Sophie curtsies and they head out.

Tony's gawking at the ideas now implanted in his head but his wife turns to him calm as ever. "Well that was a waste. Sure they bring desolate wherever they go, they're Petrova dopplegangers. I just want to know whether they were talking about the order in which they came to us or the order they were originally born in!" She huffs muttering as she walks in the house. "Is Amara the werewolf or Tatia? Do I get a grimwore if I _know_ it's going to be studied by Elena or not, because Kat won't if she's the witch? Ugh that leaves the question if Elena's the youngest or Amara because this ancient power stuff is really confusing, if I don't know how and who to prepare for! I guess I should just stock up on blood bags, if it's a toss up between Tatia and Kat vs Kat and Elena, two out of those choices have a problem with feeding and one of them is listed in both choices! And I can't..."

Tony stopped listening after his wife went on a rant. Sure those people predicted the end of the world with his children but he really wished they'd predict if his wife was going to be this neurotic forever.

* * *

 **AN/: So I wanted to play around with this. The thought of the girls growing up together intrigues me and I want to explore their dynamic. I will be reintroducing some characters from the actual series, mind you. My hope is that eventually I can set it up to be more than what it seems with characters from _The Originals_ , Disclaimer not mine, and _The Vampire Diaries_ , also not mine, influencing them. Let it be clear that the Traveler's dynamic is supposed to be vague, as in no one truly knows what side they are on. Also this is going to have _some_ bashing of characters but within the realm of decency. Please review and tell me what you think.**


	2. It Was The Worst Of Times

For once in there lives, they are on their own. Freshmen and sophomore year goes by in a blink of an eye and, before they know it, it's already there junior year. Tony and Nina are getting more anxious by the day but the girls are oblivious.

* * *

 _ **Honk! Honk!**_ "You guys..." Elena whines as the rest of her sisters pile into the car. "We are going to be late." She smiles with a roll of her eyes.

"Fashionably late 'lena, fashionably late." Kat shares a knowing smirk with Elena as she tries fixing her hair in the mirror.

"Anyone up for some Starbucks?" Tatia asks, as she already pulls them into the drive through.

"Yes!" The other girls all groan in love for their favorite blend.

Moving out and finishing up their drinks Amara speaks. "You know, I think this is the first year Momma and Daddy haven't driven us to school on our first day."

"Yeah, probably because we woke up an hour earlier than we said we would, even though _somebody_ kept whining that we were going to be late." Kat smirked playfully at Elena to which the other girl retaliated with sticking her tongue out.

Kat pinched her in the sides making Elena laugh. "It's an amazement that they didn't wake up earlier to my beautiful voice."

"Yeah."

"Sure."

"Wonderful." The other girls pretended not to care even though all basically had the same voice but used them in slight variations of tones. Elena mock scoffed at them but they all had a smile on their face.

"They were up pretty late last night." Tatia observed out loud.

Amara crinkled her nose. "We're not going to be older sisters are we?"

Tatia laughed. "No!" Shaking her head, she went on. "I don't know why, but they always stay up late on the phone the day before we go to our first day of school."

Kat laughs. "And then they always whine how we take forever to get ready for school when they only drive us to the first day anyways."

"I can just hear Daddy now..." Elena mocks. "What do you girls all do in the bathroom," The other girls joined in. " _ **at the same time?**_ "

The girls laugh as they pull into the parking lot of the school. Getting out of a different door of the car, they all stood in front of it looking into the school. "Why do you think they always do that?" Amara mused.

Tatia shrugged. "I don't know, protection? But seriously, it's a school." She told them, breaking the linked arm chain they themselves ritualized for their first day of the new year. Walking three steps away from them and crossing the border that ended the parking lot and began the school grounds, Tatia turned to look at them. "What's the worst that could happen?"

Glancing at one another and smiling, the girls followed suit and linked back up with Tatia at the left, Kat next to her, Amara on the other side of Kat, and Elena at the far right. Giggling, the girls walked in with self-assurance and gossip of the new year.

" _ **What's the worst that could happen?"...**_ _ **Famous. Last. Words.**_

* * *

Tatia sits in her history class taking notes as her new teacher, Mr. Kimber, explains the greatest mysteries of the universe.

"Now Roanoke, perhaps one of the biggest mysteries of the world happens to be just a state hop away from us, in little ol' South Carolina, and yet we still don't have a clue as to what happened to one of the first American colonizations. Any theories?"

"Aliens!" Brady, the class clown and wide receiver for the school, joked. Everyone snickered knowing that Brady wouldn't get any flak but it didn't matter. Brady was a well liked guy with everyone in most of the school.

Mr. Kimber chuckled along. "Thank you Mr. Crowlou, but I am a man of history, not of science. Convince me, sway me to believe your beliefs. Marcus?"

Tatia turned her head to see the slouching boy who aptly paid attention in this class only, who was two seats behind her. "They ate one another." He said, high-fiving Brady next to him.

Mr. Kimber smiled, nodding his head. "Yes, that is a theory but we have no remains to suggest otherwise. Charlie?"

"They got up and left?" Charlie smiled, not really sure how to answer her uncle's question. Charlie and Tatia shared a lot of classes together. They didn't really hangout much alone mostly in the group of friends she had but they often talked to one another, partnered up for assignments, and did a lot of extra curricular activities so naturally they were good friends. However, the one thing Charlie had been dreading most was being in her uncle's class, though Tatia would never understand why. Mr. Kimber seemed like a cool guy for a teacher.

"Hmm, I like it but why isn't there anything left for them to leave?" Everyone must have had the same confusing look on their face as Tatia did because Mr. Kimber explained forward. "With every move you make in life, every decision, every choice to go right or left, you leave a little part of you. Now I'm not just talking material things because if I were then we'd surely have clues as where you went. No, I'm talking about the presence you make right now. The parts of you that you implant with others. The parts of you that reassure _you,_ that you're really there." He tells them and everyone in the room is silent hanging on every word their teacher tells them. Tatia hugs herself tight, slightly trembling but not understanding why. Mr. Kimber goes on. "Because those parts you leave? That's history. _You_ are making history, _right now._ " Now leaning back on the front of his desk Mr. Kimber tries to make eye contact with everyone in the room. "So, why does history have no record of what happened to Roanoke?" He asks them as they still hold their breath. "Tatia?"

Glancing up she sees that she did indeed raise her hand. Trying to think of a response Tatia starts. "Maybe it's like what Charlie said?"

Mr. Kimber raises an eyebrow but has an amused look on his face. "We've already disproved Charlie's theory, what makes yours seem any different?" Charlie herself looks wide eyed and confused at Tatia's suggestion but also curious as is the rest of the class.

"Maybe it wasn't that they forgot to forget to leave something behind. Maybe it was that they didn't want to leave anything behind."

Mr. Kimber's amused face grows into a big grin. "I'm listening."

Tatia goes on. "History says that Roanoke only lasted five years and that, had it prevailed on, could have been the most prosperous and innovative colony in history."

"But?" Mr. Kimber stokes beard in liking.

"But, we will never know if they would or not. So what if they didn't want to be?" Tatia tries to explain further. "You say what we're doing right now is history, that right now we are all making history. Perhaps, the people of Roanoke knew that it doesn't matter whether you take the right or the left step. They knew that they didn't want to be part of history so they weren't and made sure to not leave any clues so others would know where'd they go." Everyone was quiet for a while while Mr. Kimber kept stroking his beard with a smile on his face.

Charlie still looked confused. "So wait, the people of Roanoke were just...trolling?"

 _ **Ring!**_

Everyone gathered up their stuff to head out to their next class. Picking up her bag Tatia started to head out with Charlie, and Marcus. Before leaving they passed Mr. Kimber. "Bye Uncle Greg."

"Bye Mr. Kimber." both Tatia and Marcus said.

"Ms. Petrova, mind if I chat with you?" Tatia looked to her friends as they shrugged.

Brady rounding about her before moving towards Charlie and Marcus. "You'll know where we'll be."

Tatia nodded before walking with Mr. Kimber to her next class a little slower. "I'm told by you're previous teachers that you and you're other sister, Kat, are quite the history buffs."

Agreeing, Tatia reproached. "Amara and Elena not so much. Kat favors world history though. Says it speaks to her."

"Which is why I have to ask, are you all related to Nina Petrova, the archaeologist?"

"She's my mother." Tatia smiles with pride.

"Indeed, the resemblance is uncanny." Mr. Kimber nodded. "I went to her speech at the local museum the other day about her soon departure with recent discoveries for Covington, Georgia and was wondering if she knew anything about the matter that she could disclose _non-statement_ based?"

Tatia was starting to feel the ice cold shiver of suspicion run down her spine. "Disclose?"

"Yes, with recent findings I was wondering if she would be in need of a partner?" He smirked.

Her gut sensing some ulterior motive, Tatia decided to put an end to it. "My father, Antony Barthelow, is my mother's _only_ assistant when it comes to excavations." She commanded getting territorial. "Often they are gone for months at a time." That part she had little to no idea about. Truthfully speaking, Tatia thought her mother and father had gotten out of the excavation/dig business and as far as she could tell, they hadn't been on a dig since her and her sisters were born. Tatia just assumed that her mother worked at the museum, now as the curator, even though she was a leading expert, and her father worked from home, for what she has no clue either (though Kat says government agent like she knows at all). "I doubt you could clear that length of indefinite time with Principal Phillips, Mr. Kimber." Waiting right out side her next class, Tatia was glad that Mrs. Trill was one of her teachers last year for sophomore English. The woman allowed each one of her students three free passes to be late without notes.

 _ **Ring!**_

Glaring at her now not favorite teachers Tatia spoke. "You're late for your next class, Mr. Kimber." She told him, turning around and walking into junior English. Unaware of the smug look on Mr. Kimber's mug.

This class she shared with Kat. Glancing up from their friends in that class Kat saw the sour look on Tatia's face as she came forward. Sending one of her own, as if to ask what went down without her, Tatia gave her another face saying that they'd talk about it later.

* * *

Amara carefully looked at Elena's notes from Science while she sat at the large window. When it comes to Biology Elena is your girl but Chemistry? She's so confused.

The girls have a system though. It's weird and kind of silly but they keep this giant binder notebook that they pass throughout the school day where whenever they are confused on a subject they just get a twin that's pretty knowledgeable in that area to write it down in more explainable terms. If there are handouts the girls just put question marks to the things they don't know and and one of them will write down the step by step process on how to get the answer in the the binder. They also use it to talk to one another about the latest thing floating around school. Funny thing is, they all have the same handwriting, so it looks like someones answering themselves. Still it helps, their little school diary.

Amara was so immersed with answering Elena's question that the flash startled her.

 _ **Pwew!**_

Jumping slightly the boy behind the camera looked worried himself as she giggled putting a hand next her racing heart. "You scared me."

Glancing down at his camera the boy seemed to feel remorse for what he had done. "Sorry," He shook his head. "Older camera's get the best pictures." The boy tried to explain himself. Staring back up at her he walked towards her area by the window. Turning his head to see that the area was completely empty save for the people on the other side of the window enjoying the outdoors he went further. "I probably should have asked permission to take your picture before I took."

Amara smiled in mock amusement nodding along. "Yeah you probably should have."

"Well, I'm not a creeper," He told her pulling at a badge that stuck to the side of his shirt. "Photography for the student newspaper."

Taking the unclipped badge in her hands she examined it. "Hmm," Amara hummed going along. "Very official."

"Yep," The dark eyed boy said rubbing his knuckle against his shoulder. "I'm legit."

Amara only smiled and without warning he took another picture. The Petrova with the shocked mischievous face playfully pushing his shoulder at his antics.

The boy smirked shrugging. "There I go again! I don't know what's wrong with me." He feigned ignorance, before bringing his smirk back to her. "You are in my spot, though."

"Your spot?" Amara guffawed in disbelief.

"Well yeah." He motioned over to where she was sitting.

Leaning in to whisper tauntingly. "I'm pretty sure I've never seen you here before, let alone this school before."

"You don't need to know that this is _my_ spot, to know that this the best place for lighting when taking pictures." He said using his eyes to indicate the background of people gathering around in the school courtyard on the other side of the window.

Amara rolled her laughing eyes. "Well I'm sorry I became such a disruption to your ability to take pictures."

"Thank you," He played along. "I appreciate your apology and I will take that into account on whether to accept it or not."

"Well, _when_ my picture is in the newspaper, it's Amara with one m not two." She retorted back with a smirk.

Putting his hand over his heart with a aghast expression as if he'd been shot he questioned her. "Black mail?"

Amara inclined with a smile. "My sisters will never let me live it down if I don't take the opportunity to be in the paper, so _yeah_ you better believe it."

"That's okay," He answered back quirkily. "I was going to put you on the front page anyway, with it labeled _**"The Light Bandit"**_ in big bold letters." He motioned with his hands on an invisible newspaper. "Ya know, maybe even offer a reward."

"Oh yes," she grinned with him. "that'll convince them."

 _ **Ring!**_

Watching as the hallway suddenly flooded itself with people getting ready for lunch, Amara got up. "Well, that's my study hall."

Getting up himself, the boy grabbed his camera. "Hey," He looked to the ground but sheepishly stared at her from over his eyelids. "If you don't want me to use the picture, go to room C13 before Thursday. I'll probably be there. If I'm not and it's locked, go across the hallway to the room ask for Drix, kay?" Amara nodded in understanding. Straightening up and smirking at her he held out his hand for her to shake. "No hard feelings, right?"

Amara took with conviction. "Right."

Ending their handshake they started to go in the opposite direction. Turning around and walking backwards Drix yelled. "Hey is Petrova spelled with one t or two?"

Amara turned around and laughed. "You're funny Drix." She meant to say it with sarcasm, like Kat, but couldn't find enough in her to build it for the guy. Turning back around, she walked to the cafeteria.

"Yeah," Drix said to himself. "I am."

It didn't even dawn on Amara that she never gave Drix her last name.

* * *

Kat ran the laps in deep thought. After what Tatia had told them at the lunch table Kat had been thinking. While Elena and Amara were trying to throw out suggestions on what Mr. Kimber's angle was with Momma, Kat started thinking about Daddy. It had never occurred to them to ask what their father's job really was and even though Kat joked all the time that he was working for the CIA or FBI or something it had always been that: just a joke. Now, well, she wasn't too sure. That's what made her uneasy. Ekaterina Petrova was not someone who easily bristled. She loved to be prepared and in control of any situation. Maybe that's why she enjoys the laps she does in gym class. Running from something is controllable. It gives her time to think, time to plan, put together the next play. If that _is_ so then, _what_ is she running from?

Hearing the coach blow the whistle Kat saw the others start to head in. Jogging across the field Kat was suddenly hit with a vision. It's of Elena being beaten up and by the looks of it, by her. _**"Katherine!"**_ Elena gasps. Kat's clutching her head falling to her knees trying to regain her sight she squints seeing a tall man in a suit through the chain link fence staring at her with disappointment but she blinks and he disappears. She thought that she was done with these visions that crawl into her nightmares but now they are coming back out to the surface. Kat tries to compose herself but falls to the ground in a heap.

* * *

Elena runs to the nurses office doorway only to find Tatia leaning against the wall and Amara sitting in a chair next to the cot Kat is on, watching her as she sits and drinks some water.

Elena tries to catch her breath. "What happened!?"

"I was running, got all icky and gross from sweat and dehydration and fainted." Kat told her as if she'd said this before.

"I've told her that I would gladly phone your parents," The nurse walks back to tell the other girls as Kat rolls her eyes in disinterest. "But she refuses and insists on a note."

Kat puts on an annoyed smile, "I've already told you Carlotta, I just fainted, I didn't kill myself." This time Elena crossed her arms rolled her eyes and sighed at Kat's constant need to prove she was better and indestructible. She didn't even realize how close her last statement really was to Elena if her sister kept pushing herself. "Just bring me a note and send me back to class. There's only a couple class periods left, so there is literally no point on asking my parents to come and pick me up from a simple thing as forgetting my water bottle. Besides," Kat shrugged putting on her bravado. "I looked good today and will not go home on the first day back to school before _everyone_ has seen my outfit."

Elena let out a disgruntled noise, wondering how her sister could be so difficult at times.

Tatia turned to the nurse. "Could you give us a minuet?"

Once the nurse left the girls looked at Kat with intensity that could only make her annoyed. "You know, I have to agree with Daddy on this one, when we do this to him, it's _really_ creepy."

Tatia held concern. "What happened out there Kat? And don't give us the 'I was dehydrated' speech, you run faster and better than an Olympic gold medalist."

"I had a panic attack." She shrugged as if admitting it. Though Elena could tell that wasn't the whole truth and she could sense that Amara and Tatia knew it too.

"About what?" Elena asked with a gut wrenching suspicion that this has something to do with her episodes from when they were kids.

Standing up frustrated Kat walked over to the other side of the cot to pick up her sports bag she used for gym. "Who I should take to homecoming, I don't know!" Kat took a deep breath. "Look, I'm probably just stressed over thinking about what Mr. Kiss-ass wants with Momma. Can we just drop it and get on with our lives?"

The other girls sent each other a knowing look before Tatia spoke. "Fine but you have to at least tell Momma and Daddy you fainted when we get home."

Kat sighed. "Deal, now can we go before Carlotta gives me the evil eye?"

Seeing an opportunity, Elena speaks up. "I'll walk you to your locker."

Kat fakes sadness. "Ooo I was actually going to skip this period and take a shower real quick before heading to the next, so I volunteer Tatia as tribute," When Tatia sends Kat a bewildered look Kat sighs. "You have the curly hair shampoo and conditioner." _Duh_ , Elena thinks but doesn't bother to say out loud when Kat's clearly deviating.

Walking out with Tatia and Kat going one way and Amara and Elena going the other Elena lets out a frustrated sigh. "She's hiding something."

Amara nodded her head in agreement. "Yeah. But... we agreed not to talk about it, so..."

The walked along in a 15 second silence before Elena broke it. "The least she could do is tell us if it was about one of us."

Amara breathed deep. "Elena you know if Kat was having those weird nightmares she'd do her best to keep the rest of us out of it."

Elena stared at her shoes as her and Amara leaned against Elena's locker. "I know, I know, she's only doing what she thinks is best but...should we really let her just carry that burden?"

"I don't think anyone deserves that burden," Amara shrugged trying to imagine violent images popping out at you when you least expect it. "I mean that's like having a million people locked inside you screaming and you not being able to do a thing about it. It's hell, sure, but if Kat doesn't want to share it with us then that's her own personal hell to keep."

"We're sisters though." Elena said like that was the answer to everything.

Amara stared ahead thinking deeply. "I guess then it's time for us to be dragged through hell."

* * *

It was 1:00 at the Barthelow-Petrova house hold. The girls would be getting ready to leave school in nearly an hour and a half. Nina was frantically packing.

"Counter chants?" Tony asks as he throws some close from their dresser over to her and she catches them stuffing them in the suitcase.

"Already memorized." Nina tells him grabbing various salts and herbs that they have stored under a door hidden by the bed.

"I'm leaving you with the cantor grinds. I hope you don't have to use it-" she says standing up to find him holding her by the shoulders inches away from her lips gazing into her eyes.

"-But you can never be too careful." He finishes for her before going in for the short but passionate kiss.

Pulling back Nina stares back at him. "I wish we had more time."

"Hey," Tony grabbed her chin not breaking their locked eyes. "Everything will work out, my plans are fool proof."

Nina's eyes went wide. "The last time you said that, you we were about to propose to me."

"It was a beautiful ceremony." Tony countered knowing what was coming.

Nina gasped. "We had to fight off hunters in Wisconsin and take refuge with natives and a shaman in North Dakota!"

"Okay, so maybe not fool proof." Nina whined in worry. "But, I will do everything I can to keep our daughters safe." Now holding her head in his hands Tony watched as a loving smile formed on her beautiful face. "I promise." Kissing her one last time Tony let her go as she grabbed her bags and loaded them into the car.

Tony knew what was coming. He knew what had to be done. He knew that he too was going to have to leave soon. That was the day he feared because then the girls would be truly alone. Defenseless, easy targets.

* * *

 **AN:/ So chapter two and I'm already hyped but are you? Review, review! New characters are being introduced but the old ones are just as important and will make there win soon. (haha I've already slipped a familiar one in there. First person to guess who gets a mention some way in the story ; ) What's going on with Tony and Nina? Shady stuff I'd say... hmmm... Anyway tell me what you think please! And questions are welcome too!**


	3. It Was Of Times Of Foreigners Gods

When the girls get home, they are surprised to find just their father there. It's not an odd occurrence but usually their mother takes off the first day of school to welcome the girls home. To not find her humming along with their father, as he makes himself something to snack on, is just strange.

"Daddy, we're home!" Tatia yells as they walk through the threshold.

"Kitchen!" He yells back.

"I don't know about you guys but the stomping grounds are putting on a big welcome back display," Kat told them as she set her binders and bag down on the coffee table. "Anyone up for a little fun?"

"Sure, why not?" Tatia agreed, setting her stuff down. "With all the craziness that happened today, we could use some unwinding time."

"Okay." Amara returned. "I think it could be fun." They all turned to Elena, waiting for her answer with big doe eyes.

"Fine." Elena gave in as Tatia hugged her in thanks. "But only for a little while, I mean we've got homework and-"

"Sshh." The girls tried silencing her rant as they pushed her to the kitchen where their father was currently sitting at the counter.

"Hey Daddy," Tatia gave a quick glance around. "Where's Momma?"

"She got called into Georgia for something real quick. Doesn't know when she'll be back but she's sorry that she couldn't be here to see you four home." He smiled with love at his daughters.

"Yeah," Tatia treaded slowly, grabbing a Gatorade from the fridge. "A teacher of mine mentioned something like that." Turning slowly she watched her Dad's reaction. Tatia was keen to pick up the slight tensing in Daddy's shoulder's but didn't mention it. "Mr. Greg Kimber, you know him?"

Their father tried to pull off nonchalant but Tatia could tell something was up. "Can't say that I do but if he's a teacher at your school then your mother might. She usually does all the big word talking." Tony winked at Amara jest-fully, who was known for pulling out a big vocabulary word or two when she needed to.

Taking a bite full of yogurt, Kat decided to mention to there father their plans of the evening. "Daddy, the girls and I were thinking about going to the stomping grounds. Want us to bring you back anything?"

"The decapitated heads of the boys I know are going to try and ogle you." Tony answered back with a smirk.

"Right," Tatia looked at her sisters. "So dance only with the boys you find repulsing."

"Thanks Daddy." the girls said in unison kissing his cheek one by one.

Moving to the door the girls hardly hear a whisper as Tony started chanting.

* * *

Walking down the trodden path, the girls laughed and talked about what they each did in the classes they didn't have with one another. "Haha, and so Marcus said they ate each other!" Tatia laughed.

"Yummy!" Elena wiggled her eyebrows in fun. As they passed the flame jugglers that were surrounded by a small crowd, the girls marched over to the cotton candy stands.

"You know, I think we're just over reacting." Tatia told Amara as she took a piece of the blue cotton candy.

"Yeah," Amara nodded, pointing out the ferris wheel up ahead to Elena and Katherine who nodded in understanding. "I mean let's be realistic. Momma's hot."

Kat hummed in agreement. "True, and it certainly wouldn't be the first time a guy has offered to bone her."

"Or the last." Elena said trying to grab more of Kat's flavor of cotton candy while the owner tried to shoo her away.

Tatia shook her head admittedly. "It's just weird knowing that it's Charlie's uncle and our history teacher."

"Ah, to be wanted by every man on earth," Kat mused with sarcasm. "such a tragedy."

"Kat!" Elena laughed with a shove to her sister.

Kat shoved back innocently. "What? Personally, I'm not going to mind it one bit."

Amara snickered. "But you already have every boy in school wrapped around your pink."

" _Our pinky_ , 'Mara, _our_ pinky. Don't think you're so innocent." Kat smirked.

"Who?" Amara glanced around to add to the dramatics. "Little old me?"

Tatia chuckled. "Impossible, all of you."

Getting in line for the ferris wheel, Tatia noticed that it was two per seat. Glancing back at Elena chatting avidly to a listening Kat, Tatia felt that they should work out whatever was going on with them. "Dear Amara, will you do me the honors of keeping me company on this fine ride to the sky?"

Noticing the workings of a plan forming in her oldest sister's eyes, Amara went along. "It would be a privilege, Lady Tatia." Strapping onto the ride first, the two lifted off into the sky.

* * *

Once Kat and Elena were settled in, a comfortable silence took over the two. "So...what's going on?" Elena feigned innocence.

"See, this is why Tatia's a sure win for school president next year and you're not" Kat sing-songed. "You're horrible at loopholes and deceit."

Elena looked aghast. "I am not!"

"Then what did you want to talk about, Elena?" Kat stared angrily and intensely at her sister.

The girl with the straight hair huffed, crossing her arms. "You never make things easy, do you?"

"And _you_ don't know how to let things be." Kat pointed out.

"We're all worried about you, Kat." Elena admits.

This time it was Kat's turn to pout. "Yeah well I'm a big girl Elena, I can take care of myself." They sat in a tense silence, until they were at the top. "It's suppose to be a full moon tonight." Kat spoke as she and Elena watched it together. Sighing, Elena scooted herself over so that she could hug Kat. The other girl accepted it and hugged her little sister back.

"I'm sorry." Elena whispered, knowing that she had overstepped her boundaries.

"Me too." Kat begrudgingly answered but none the less smiled. Moving away from each other, Kat and Elena lurched forward a bit when the ferris wheel came to an abrupt halt.

Hearing screams of panic and fear, Elena and Kat looked towards the other. "What's going on?" Elena's voice climbed with worry. Another scream was heard as the girls glimpsed down from there position. From the halfway mark of top and bottom, Elena and Kat could see people frantically running in terror through the field grounds. They heard a boom coming from somewhere beyond there sight then one of the wooden stands caught fire.

"I don't know, let's go find out. Unbuckle the seat belt." Kat commanded. Elena hurriedly did as she was told. Ascending out of the compartment, Kat and Elena tried to balance their way from the beam to the center of the ferris wheel. Peering out the girls hoped that their other sisters were safe.

* * *

 _50 minuets earlier..._

"You think they'll be fine?" Amara asked as her and Tatia both watched Elena and Kat's compartment from the ground.

"Well if we find a mangled body, we know _one of them_ is the murderer." Tatia smirked. Turning and walking to the ring toss, Tatia payed for a game. Peeking out of the corner of her eye, the older Petrova saw a boy with a camera taking a picture from afar. "Amara, don't look now, but I think your friend from earlier has come to trick you again."

Angling her body to see Drix wink at her with a grin, Amara waved him over. "The Light Bandit strikes again." Drix quirked, sauntering over. Amara cocked her head in confusion but Drix just pointed to a light that was literally hitting Amara dead on, giving her an ethereal glow in the dark.

"More pictures for the newspaper?" Amara mused.

"Yeah, I mean you can't be too careful and besides, most of the student body comes to the fair grounds when they hold an event. I figured, might as well get some pictures in before Thursday." He motioned to the camera that was hanging around his neck.

"You tricked me by the way." Amara pouted, crossing her arms. "There's no such thing as room C13, I checked before leaving school today."

Drix laughed a little to himself, turning his smile to her. "There is it's just hard to find if you don't know where to look. Here, I'll make it a game, _if_ you can find C13, I'll give you back all the pictures I've taken of you, no questions asked. Deal?" He asked holding out his left hand with a hesitant smile.

"Deal." She took and shook it. "And _when_ I find it, you have to take a picture I'm prepared for and _that_ will be the one you feature in the newspaper." Amara struck up a bargain.

"No problem." He agreed still shaking her hand.

Letting go of one another, Tatia watched their encounter with amusement. Clearing her throat, the curly haired Petrova thought she'd bring them back from whatever inside conversation they were having with there eyes ( _they are_ _so_ _flirting_ ) _._ "Hi, I'm Tatia." She introduced herself to Drix, holding out her own hand for him to take. Turning towards her, she thought she saw a flicker of disgust cross his eyes but dismissed it immediately for the trick of light (with what little they had) as he smiled at her as well.

"Drix Anson." The dark haired boy greeted.

Tatia chuckled. "Neat name."

Drix shrugged. "Neat guy." He said, letting go of her hand, and smiling.

Tatia was unsure but she had this weird pull in her stomach. It was like a gut feeling, internally battling with itself on whether she should even like this guy. He seemed okay, for someone she just met, but something in the back of her head screamed _**run!**_ "Well, we better get going." Tatia told Amara while trying to quell the uneasy pit in her stomach. "Can you send a text to Kat and tell her and Elena that we'll be heading home?" Tatia asked Amara, trying to get her sister to move along.

"Sure." Amara told her already holding out her phone and typing the message. "It was fun seeing you again Drix." She told him.

"Later, Light Bandit." Drix smiled.

Grabbing Amara by the shoulder Tatia tried to lead the girl away. Peeking over her's Tatia waved. "It was nice meeting you Drix."

Drix nodded with an unsettling smirk. "Tatia." And though the girl wasn't completely sure, she could have sworn she heard a bit of distaste in his voice.

They walked together through the woods on the path that would lead them straight back into town. Moving her head so that Tatia was staring up at the sky, the moon seemed so peaceful. Then it hit her. "Ohhh!" Tatia wined.

Startled Amara looked to her sister. "What."

"I gave Elena the keys to the house." She stomped her foot with her hands buried in her pockets.

"Hey, it's okay." Amara said. "I'll just wait on the porch for you to join me." She explained, already knowing her sister was probably going to go back to the fair grounds to get the keys. "Knowing those two, they'll stay out later, checking out guys." Tatia rolled her eyes, thinking how exactly on par that was, and started walking back.

"Just don't listen to Kat if she suggests you leave Elena to the side while you two go and dance with boys," Amara yelled after her knowing that Tatia and Kat loved to dance and draw out attention; Tatia unintentionally, Kat completely intentionally. Tatia waved, signaling that she heard her sister but didn't bother to turn around. "Otherwise I'll be on the porch all night!" She poked fun at the more playful sister, to which Tatia only let out a hearty laugh but still kept walking.

Tatia was almost back to the clearing when she saw two girls and a guy run the way she just came from. Watching as they sped past her, Tatia was curious as to what they were running from but still kept walking ahead. That is until she heard the screams and broke out into a run towards the danger herself. "Kat! Elena!"

* * *

Thanking their mother in their head for putting all of them through gymnastics when they were younger, Elena and Kat balanced all the from one end of the beam to the other, holding onto the center poll of the ferris wheel. Maneuvering and and shimming her way down, Kat yelled out instructions to Elena as they made their way to dangerous ground. Seeing people running and screaming for their lives, Kat and Elena tried to decide which way they should take off in. Suddenly, dark looming figures marched through picking up and throwing people out of the way with certain intention of injury and death.

"Run!" Both girls said to one another as they took off away from the figures. They would have gotten farther had a fiery structure not fallen in front of their path.

"Over here!" Kat pulled Elena along finding a crawlspace for them to go through. Getting out and into a tent Elena and Kat tried to catch their breath.

"This must be the house of mirrors." Elena observed.

"Creepy." Kat noted. "I say we wait it out here until whatever the those things are gone." She explained as they walked through the tent.

"Not going to argue with you there." Elena said. "We should keep close," the straight haired girl suggested while examining the mirror beside her. "Try not to stray too far awa-" Looking at the spot that Kat had just been the girl was gone. "Kat?!"

"Kat?!" Kat heard Elena's voice but when they got into the tent she could have sworn she'd seen another girl motioning over for them to follow. She had taken one, two, three steps, at most and before she knew it Kat had lost Elena and seemed to have lost herself in the maze.

"Easy to do, huh?" Kat looked to her left only to find her mirrored reflection smiling at her...but Kat wasn't smiling.

"Get lost, that is." Another one of her reflections from her left smirked smugly. Now Kat knew she was going crazy. Great. Quickening her steps a little Kat tried to look for Elena or at least a way out.

* * *

Amara had finally made it to the house. Sitting on the back porch steps, the little Petrova waited until a thought struck her. Tatia gave Elena the keys, which means more than likely Tatia was the one to tell Elena that she had to lock the door. Unfortunately for everyone that lives with her, Elena has this bad habit of forgetting and leaving doors unlocked and she literally would let _anyone_ in without thinking twice about it, so long as they told her a good enough reason. It drives them insane but for once it works out for Amara's favor.

Letting herself in, Amara quietly closes the door, thinking that her father is already asleep. Deciding to go let him know that she made it back alright and that the others will be joining them shortly, Amara makes her way to her parents' room. From the slightly ajar door, she hears his voice as he talks quietly the closer she gets to the room. Amara figures he's on the phone with their mother and is about to pass by to go upstairs to her room when she hears him say something that makes her stop.

 _"Of course the girls don't know yet and I intend to keep it that way as long as possible."_ Backtracking so that she is closer to the cracked door, Amara listens in.

 _"There's no doubt in my mind that what's going down in Covington is connected to Mystic Falls and New Orleans. That's why they sent_ _my_ _wife to investigate."_ Amara made a mental note to delve more into Covington, Georgia when she gets a chance and the other places her father mentioned. She'd heard of New Orleans, it was after all, the birthplace of jazz but this Mystic Falls? She'd be lucky if a few hundred people lived in what sounded like a small town city. Amara doubted that she'd find anything on that place.

 _"God knows I need Nina now more than ever. I see the signs, it's all there, it's clear now as to who's who, the girls are_ _changing_ _."_ Something in her father's voice made Amara think that he wasn't still thinking that they were _still_ going through puberty.

 _"Tatia is becoming more possessive and aggressive everyday and it didn't dawn on me until earlier that tonights one of_ _those_ _nights."_ Amara furrowed her eyebrows. Sure Tatia had become more territorial these past couple months but that's Tatia. She's the protector and yeah, out of all of them, even Kat, she has the worst temper but quite honestly, Amara has never seen her as the aggressive type. Maybe Tatia has been a little more on edge lately but maybe Amara has grown used to it already.

 _"Kat's having visions, she thinks she can hide them but Nina and I know that her nightmares are getting worse. Her former self or one of them is trying to break in. That Pierce girl did horrible things, especially to the Gilbert girl. We can't let that happen again."_ When they were children Kat had these horrible nightmares, never the same, but always with the same theme: violence, rage, unfeeling. Then one day Momma took Kat to see one of her special friends (Amara just figured now that they had went to see a specialist or a psychologist) and Kat didn't have them anymore. It was always hard because whenever Kat had her episodes she closed everyone off, trying to keep them out so that she could keep them from getting hurt. Gilbert and Pierce were definitely flagged in Amara's mind now.

 _"Elena's so far behind in what she needs to be doing. Sure, she's complete now but I've watched those people, I know how she should have started when she was a young girl but things were so unclear then. Nina and I just hope that when the time comes that the pressure doesn't break her."_ Elena? Broken by pressure? Yeah right! Elena is the most rational calm girl there is. In fact, she works _better_ under pressure and she knows it, welcomes it even. She was chosen as their school's cheer leading captain when she was a _freshman_. What is it, Amara wondered, that Elena should have started on when she was younger, to have enough power to break her?

 _"And Amara,"_ Her dad sighed. The girl in question payed extra close attention to whatever her Daddy was telling this person. _"She's so spirited and full of life. How's that all going to change when she becomes whatever she's supposed to save us from? We've tried to prepare and figure out what she'll be, Nina and I. Took out every book, called every connection, made quick trips without the girls knowledge but I don't know what to do."_ Amara breathed in and out slowly, hearing her father's voice crack. _"You want to what the worst part is? There's nothing I can do to prevent it. The change. Those people told me it would happen regardless of whether I try to keep it from happening or not."_ Moving away from her father's door, Amara padded quietly back outside to the porch. Sitting down with her hands folded, she thought deeply about what she had to do.

Getting up, she made sure that the door made a loud noise before yelling inside."Daddy, I'm home! The others will be soon."

There was a beat of silence. "'Kay baby girl. I'm heading to bed, night."

"Night." She half yelled back, waiting to see the glow of light turn off and hear him shut the door. Amara counted to 100 then she bolted. Running up the carpeted stairs to the room she shared with her sisters, Amara closed the door, grabbed the laptop, and started typing away. Her first search? New Orleans.

* * *

Tatia was writhing on the woodland ground in complete and utter pain. Every bone felt like it was breaking and setting, breaking and setting, over and over again. Her muscles felt like they were being torn slowly from the already painful bone spasming. The blood in her veins felt like it was on fire, so hot that it was like molten lava bubbling, spiking through her skin. It was a stark contrast to her head that literally, was so cold she might as well have submerged it into a bucket of ice. Every fiber of hair on her body was standing on edge, bristling at the itch. Her mouth was in an O formation as if she could yell out but no sound was being permitted from the already dry vocal chords.

Unable to look anywhere but the big beautiful full moon, Tatia didn't want to see what laid beside her. In her effort to get to the fair ground clearing, Tatia ran into a Reagan, a sophomore team mate of Brady's, he'd looked so scared that he started attacking her probably thinking that she was whatever he was trying to escape. They struggled around for a bit before Tatia finally pushed him off...straight into the spiked broken tree stump. Impaling him as he slowly died and bled out. That's when the pain started. She kept watching the moon, in all it's glory, thinking how funny that the one time she wants to shut her eyes, she can see everything with heightened clarity (she suspects from the adrenaline). Suddenly everything stops. Her pain, her ache, her...thoughts. Tatia blacks out.

* * *

Elena makes it out of the trick mirrors to see that everything is almost destroyed and no one is to be found, save for some few bodies she sees scattering the ground. The girl throws one last glance at the tent, praying that Kat made it out okay, and runs through the already desolate grounds. She nearly pukes when she almost trips over a dead body. A gurgled sound makes its way out of her throat when Elena finds that it's the pig Corey Mockson from her English class. His chest is stained with blood from the rips of flesh that show to his mangled internal organs. The worst part to Elena is that the eyes that are so unsettlingly perverted, that hungrily gazed at her body every day last year were now unsettling for a different reason. They were empty. Gulping down whatever was left in her dry mouth and mustering up any courage she still had Elena began to run in search of help or a way out.

"Elena!" Elena slowed down to backtrack a bit. It was a familiar face. Billy Straess, the chubby boy who'd she'd been in the same classes with Elena since the 5th grade!

"Billy?" Elena whispered walking cautiously towards him. "Billy!" She exclaimed now running as fast as she could to try and help him. Billy seemed to be caught under some debris that fell from the overhang of the fair ground stage. Moving as much as she could off of him she grabbed his hand to pull him up.

Once standing, Billy bent over and threw up. Elena turned her head to the side, cringing with her already uneven stomach. Dry heaving, Billy wiped his mouth clean with his hand. "Sorry." he apologized and, had it been a more normal circumstance, Elena knew he'd be blushing.

Bending slightly to rest her hands upon her knees, Elena let in and out shaky breaths, trying to hold back her tears. "It's alright." They were in silence for a moment save for the occasional scream that was cut short by...well neither one of them wanted to think about that.

Watching her, Billy thought it seemed odd to see Elena out of class without at least one of the other twins by her side. Those girls were complete set, had been since he met them. Seeing Elena Petrova outside of school without them made her seem less larger than life. That scared him. "Where are your sisters?"

Elena straightened back up gulping. "I don't know. We should get moving, go find help."

Billy nodded as they tried to get there way out of the burning hell.

Coming to a fork, they both looked to the left noticing that there wasn't a way out. They were about to turn to the right when they heard a loud growling noise. Slowly moving around, they saw their ticket home and the creature blocking it. A large white wolf, three times the size of a normal one was moving towards them with barred teeth, cornering them into closer to the fire.

"Elena,"Billy whimpered quietly as they tried to stand their ground. "What do we do?"

For once Elena didn't know the answer as she became mesmerized with the deadly eyes that lay in front of her.

* * *

"Elena got us lost. She has to pay." Kat's reflection daunted at her.

" _I_ was following _you_." Kat defended her sister. "I should have stuck with my sister."

The reflection on her left scoffs. " _Sister?_ You had sisters, two of them."

"And brothers," Another reflection bit back.

"And a mother and a father." the jumping reflection simmered with discontent. Kat knew that it wasn't her reflection but it was one that she didn't care for to much, it was ugly with its lack of emotion. "Elena is _no sister of ours!_ "

Kat rolled her eyes still walking ahead. "See, that's what makes you _so damned annoying._ " Stopping to look to her sour faced reflection on the left Kat smirked. "You're _wrong_." Kat took pride in the fact that these reflection looked angry at there mistake. " _Elena_ is my sister. _We_ _and_ Amara _and_ Tatia are always going to be sisters. Born and raised from _our parents,_ Tony Barthelow and Nina Petrova. And there is _nothing_ that you can do to change that."

Kat smiled, thinking she had the upper hand but it dropped the moment her reflections seem to share a look with one another, before looking at her. "But _you_ will." Kat blinked and her reflection was back in her control.

Sighing, she shook her head. "They're going to put me a straight jacket and lock me in the funny farm. I know it."

* * *

Amara sighed at the computer. So far, her search with New Orleans had been just a big advertisement to visit there with the occasional mention of music, bars, cathedrals, landscaping, big wig names like the O'Connell's, Gerard, and Mikaelson's. Things that didn't pertain to the matter at hand nor interest Amara in the very least. Gathering up her will, she started typing in Covington, Georgia, since it was the closest geologically to her previous search on the map. What came up came up didn't surprise her.

"Covington, Georgia, a vast city known for its antebellum homes and rich history as of late the small town of Covington has recently uncovered a historical find that is sure to put this city on the map." Clicking the link Amara delved further. "The citizens of Covington were happy to know that some historical findings may indeed bring life and tourism to their city. Earlier within the week, Colin Pache had been called out to appraise the value of what was thought to be a historical landsite. With Pache was his 15 year old daughter, Sophie Pache, who uncovered an amazing historic find. Unaware of what she had been doing young Sophie had stumbled upon a crevice in the earth, curiosity getting the best of her, she crept down to find a tunnel leading underneath the land she had previously been walking above on. What Miss Pache found was astounding! A whole civilization buried below the surface, holding ancient ruins that may in fact unlock unanswered secrets of America. Later when Mr. Pache was informed, he too went down to inspect the city. Noting that most of the findings had been well preserved and almost completely untouched, Pache called in two experts. While Tony Barthelow sadly declined the invitation, his wife, Nina Barthelow," Amara shook her head at how they had gotten her name wrong. Her mother had always been very insistent that the girls realize that their surname was Petrova, stating that it was the 21st century and that people should be making strides to keep their name as it was born to them. "gladly took the invite. Nina refused to comment on what she suspects this civilization is but did say: "if what we have uncovered is what we are expecting then perhaps it is for the best that _we_ were the ones to find it." In other works..." Amara trailed off not finding that the least bit helpful but she did get farther than before. Searching up Mystic Falls was a dud too. Though beautiful, the small town had a high mortality but was full and rich with history both good and bad. Amara became bored with its droning on about how it was trying to make itself look better than it actually was and shut off the computer. Forgetting about searching for the names Pierce and Gilbert.

* * *

Quaking with fear Elena and Billy stood trying to except their fate. Elena noticed something very odd about the wolf and Billy must have noticed it too. "Why's it growling at _me,_ Elena?" Elena didn't want to make the assumption of his slight rotundness and she honestly didn't think that was it. The wolf, for some reason, only had eyes to attack Billy and probably would have then and their had Kat not burst out.

"Elena, Billy!" The wolf snapped its gaze to the new face for a split second then pounced towards the boy.

"No!" Elena yelled and suddenly, like a miracle, a border of flames burst forth separating the creature from the group.

The wolf leapt back in agony, having burnt its large wrist in the process. The flames were high and Elena was willing everything she had, to whatever was doing this, to keep it that way.

Kat stared at her sister in confusion. "Elena?" Breaking the girl out of her trance, Elena looked towards Billy and Kat, slow tears rolling down her face. The flames died down almost an instant after Elena's concentration was broken.

Whipping their heads around past the now charred ground. The three stood watching the whimpering wolf, as it lay in a heap on the ground nursing its wrist. Kat dared to move closer.

"Kat!" Elena warned. To which the other girl shushed her holding up her hand for silence. The beast started squirming in excruciating pain. Its form began to change and when the sun's rays broke through the trees they landed on the panting, gasping, naked form of Tatia Petrova.

Elena covered her mouth with her hands. "Oh my god."

Billy stared for a second before realizing what he was doing and rushed into action. Blushing he shed his letterman jacket off his body and knelt beside Tatia. Following his lead, the girls helped him wrap their sister up. "Ugh," Tatia moaned opening her eyes to her sisters and the familiar boy. "Elena, Kat, Billy?"

"Shh, Tatia." Kat tried to soothe her sister.

"Do you think you could stand?" Billy questioned.

"Actually," Tatia told them, moving to get up with the others. "I think I could run faster than Kat right now." Elena and Kat gave each other a worried some look. "What's going on? What happened last night? And why am I naked."

Always the gentleman but not knowing what the clue as to what he was supposed to do or what was going on, Billy made a suggestion. "Let's get you girls home."

* * *

Nina thanked the driver for brining her farther into the quarry. "Of course senora." The older man, seeming to be of some hispanic/latino descent, nodded as they drove on. "The rain, it's not so good when you don't know where you're going."

Sensing that the older man was a long time citizen of Covington, Nina decided to snoop. "I probably wouldn't have come down here if it weren't for my friends call. We don't really speak to each other often, so when we do it's usually something important." She watched his reaction. "This hidden city, any thoughts to what it might be?"

"I thought that's why they were brining you in chiquita, to figure that out." The man stared straight ahead.

"They are," Nina humored him nonchalantly. "But I was _asked_ to come out here, you _volunteered_ and I have a feeling you wouldn't have requested to be apart of something if you didn't have an inkling as to what you were looking for. So," The beautiful woman gave her what Tony dubbed the Petrova Trance. It's a face her husband swears can only be seen on Petrova dopplegangers when they want to get something. "what's the story?"

The older man was quiet for a bit then spoke. "The town's folk, the ones who haven't forgotten what _you people_ are and can do," Nina was about to argue that she didn't have a clue as to what he meant but he beat her to it. "Don't try to sway me otherwise mi chiquita, I knew what you were the moment you stepped onto the property with every man lusting at your belleza."

Nina tried to glare but Tony always said she didn't have the experience of her daughters past life to put such a hardening emotion to display on a lovely face. "Then you know that I'm not in the category of "one of them"."

The man reasoned. "It makes no difference whether you rise with la luna or burn with el sol. You are what you surround yourself with and _you,_ mi bonita, you are something quite entirely special all together."

Nina huffed knowing she couldn't get angry with that. It was her birthright, always had been and will be until she dies. The allure of the Petrova was something her mother had hated her for. _"You little slut! I saw how you let Randy look at you! Well, you won't steal another one of my men again!"_ Shaking her head of harder times, Nina focused on the matter at hand. "So what does the community say about this find?" She asked.

"There's a story mi papi used to tell mi hermanos and I when we were young." Nina waited for him to go on. "It spoke of the rising of a fallen city, a city that was condemned to burn in hell for the evil it unleashed upon the world."

Nina had a sinking feeling in her stomach. "This evil, what is it?"

"Some say it has the power to take away suffering by causing it. Others believe it can get inside your head, make you see and believe things that aren't all there. It's said to have the ability to move through the shadows, raise demons, not only of those who come in contact with it but those that Lucifer has gifted upon it itself. It steals your soul, cages half of it within the leader to consume, and leaving the other half screaming to break free of an uncontrollable body that's only willed by a dark host, following the orders of the one that consumed the broken essence."

Nina shivered at the idea. "This evil can it be stopped?"

The man was gravely silent. "What you find down there, what was sealed away below, that can be stopped. It's leader has been roaming the earth for a thousand years. Waiting. Trying to find those that will oppose him."

"How do we stop him and his army?" She demanded.

The old man stopped the car, alerting Nina that she had made it to the dig site. "You already know." _That's_ what Nina had been dreading.

* * *

 **AN:/ The plot thickens with suspense! Tatia's wolf has been unleashed, Kat's former self is getting more and more restless, Elena has no idea what's going on (haha not in the usual sense luckily), and Amara is getting deeper entangled with how their lives are all about to change. Poor Billy might crack from what he was just put through tonight. Tony is way in over his head and might just need to call in some help, we hear of the brief return of Sophie and Colin, the ones that helped with the prophesy from the first chapter, a brief mention to the homage of the Mystic Falls Gang and the Originals (they will come in soon don't worry) and what exactly has Nina stumbled upon herself? With a threat looming in their midst who can be trusted? Who _can't?_ All these questions and more will be answered sure enough. Review! And stay tuned for more of _'Trova Trot_!**


	4. For Those Gods Had A Plan

Getting out of the jeep, Nina gives one last look at the old man with the grave face. Colin walks up to stand beside her. "So, I see you've gotten the welcoming committee too!" The 1930's Bostonian vampire yelled over the rain.

Nina responded back. "He said the city is cursed with the Devil's army!"

"Ray of sunshine, that guy is!" Colin motioned with his head as the man who had brought her here sped off in the jeep the way they had come. Squeezing her shoulder, Colin led Nina to the crevice. "We were lucky to have a couple of builders make a slope for us before the rain hit!" He yelled one last time before they finally made it into the cave. "Even luckier that the whole place didn't collapse on us because of it." He smirked as Nina and himself started shimmying out of their damp rain coats.

Taking this opportunity now, rather when things got really harry, Nina ran to wrap her arms around her all but blood related figurative older brother. "Missed you Pache." She breathed a small sigh of relief as he held her in their hug.

"Me too 'Trova, me too." He smiled, separating them to look at how much she's aged since the time he last saw one another. "This way." He inclined as they walked towards the spectacle. "When we got here up above, Soph thought she heard something move down here, she went to "go exploring" and, before you know it, we end up making the front headlines. Soph thinks the stuff is older than her and considering she's 18th century baby, well, we thought we needed a little extra help."

Nina laughed at the irony. "And since you just so happen to know a Petrova doppleganger who went on to study ancient civilizations and has a degree in it, the itch to _not_ use her as a connection was too great a bait for you to break." She watched as Colin agreed with laughter in his eyes. "And the fact that she is now literally one state away from some very powerful beings that could potentially ruin everything we've come so far to achieve, well that was _too good_ of a chance to pass up as well." Nina told him voice dripping with happy sarcasm.

"He's quite good at that," A skillful voice cut through their conversation. Walking over Sophie Pache stepped onto the scene with grace and a warm smile. "making you believe that you had anything to with making your own choice." Nina curtsied low (even though she was wearing jeans), like she had been taught to by the woman who'd been like a best friend, confidant, sister, and second mother rolled all into one, before leaping at the chance to hug her. Hugging back, Sophie looked up at the physically older woman. "How are you?"

"Could be better." Nina shrugged with a lazy smile.

Sophie acknowledged this. "Right, of course, well lets get to business and have you on your way back home to those beautiful girls and loving husband, shall we?" Sophie motioned for Nina to follow them. Moving into the vacant city, the three stood in what they guessed to be the heart of it with the giant fountain in the middle of it all. "I had suspected something was amiss when these _ruins_ you see before you looked perfectly intact for a civilization buried before my time."

"Doesn't look like it's charred to ashes either." Nina grumbled with her hands in her jacket pockets.

Sophie whipped her head around at that. "Juan Cuadarno?" the woman guessed.

Colin confirmed. "Nina had the _pleasure_ of getting acquainted with the man on the ride over here."

"He shouldn't be a problem." Sophie said flipping her long red hair over her shoulder. "Let him and the town believe what they want to believe. The story is just a legend anyway."

Nina sent her friend a skeptical face. "That's a lot of dismissal, for someone who participated in prophesying the end of the world on my daughters."

Colin jumped in. "Prophesies have been around for centuries. Why your daughter, Amara, was an important part of one of the very first."

Nina rolled her eyes, taking a picture of some of the clay houses with her phone. "Yeah, and that got her killed the first time."

"Everyone dies." Sophie droned, having seen many of her young friends wither away to time. "Have you acquired enough photographs?" Nina nodded shaking her phone. "Wonderful, we should return to the surface world. My blood may have stopped cold as a vampire but I am aware of something deep and dark when I sense it,"

Colin cut in. "Yeah, you don't need a witch to tell me twice."

Sophie traced the rim of the center fountain with her cold fingers. "There's souless Magik etched in these ruins."

* * *

Tatia, Kat, Elena, and Billy made it to the Barthelow household just as they saw the ambulances, fire trucks, and police cars, rush down the early morning streets towards the opening of the woods.

Kat scoffed. "We where out all night with whatever it was that attacked us and now they come rushing to help?"

"They're rushing to a crime scene." Elena said sadly.

"No," Tatia stated, pulling the over sized jacket that covered her closer. "They're rushing to a burial ground."

Elena grabbed the keys to the house out of her pocket and opened the door leading the other three inside.

They were met with Amara, rushing to hug them but stopped short to see there rumpled and ripped clothing as well as Tatia's state of undress. "Billy Straess?" Billy waved. "What happened to you guys?"

Elena starts to answer "We-"

Kat motions with her hand to silence. "Not here." She indicates towards there father's door. Pointing with her finger upstairs, they all agreed that the safest place to discuss this was in the girl's room.

* * *

"Ambulances rushed to the scene of what so happened to be a killing spree," The anchor woman on the news said with conviction. Justin watched the television, thoroughly immersed in what was going on. "Authorities say that, they can't be for certain, but more than two dozen people and counting had fallen victims of the massacre, of the two dozen, eighteen have been marked dead and six were wounded."

The screen cut to the anchor woman standing with a young man as he had a heating blanket wrapped around his body, his eyes quaking with fear. "I h-had come out of the bath-bath-bathroom, thinking whatever everyone was running from was g-gone, w-w-when out of nowhere this huge w-wolf attacked me." Justin leaned, becoming more curious and having an inkling of what was going to happen with their family.

"A wolf?" The girl on the screen scoffed at what the anchor woman rehashed. "No, what did this tonight had nothing to do with nature." Said girl started to quiver with tears, voice breaking. "Those sick things got a hold of my little sister. Stabbed her before she even knew that they got her!"

The screen cut back to the anchor woman who seemed a bit disturbed. "Luckily, David Wells and Shelly Minsk escaped the massacre, with just a hair short of being fatal injuries. Police are now taking any information involving the what happened in the town of Strayfield, South Carolina, and should the public have any, contact Detective James Oscars, who-"

Justin's viewing was suddenly cut off with a boy standing in front of him, front torso slashed open and mattered in blood, the rest of his body pale with a hint of blue. Justin would have jumped, had he not been subjected to this his whole life. Staring at the thing in curiosity, Justin waited for it to speak. "It starts in Covington." The being said before disappearing the moment Justin blinked.

Ironically, the news chose that very moment to mention the subject. "In other news, Covington, Georgia is preparing for its big event, in light of the massive find by historian Colin Pache and his daughter Sophie Pache, the unveiling of a once believed buried ancient city, resurfaced from its millennium old wake. Pache called in fellow historian and archaeologist Nina Barthelow to..."

Justin had stopped listening after he heard "millennium old wake" he knew this was trouble and from what that thing just said, there was only one solution. "Dad!" Justin called out.

* * *

"...and now we're here." Elena ended watching the reaction of their friends. Marcus dropped a piece of popcorn that he was going to eat (the bag he brought over himself) back into its bag, mouth still hanging wide open. Brady looked at them in awe and excitement. Charlie, as usual, held a confused face. Billy just stood to the side arms crossed, as if saying ' _Yeah I_ _went through_ _this crap. Just a regular Friday.'_

Tatia's eyes glanced back and forth between the people she shared her experiences with. "Somebody say something."

Brady jumped into action. "This. Is. _Awesome!_ "

Marcus looked as though he was finding a hard time to swallow this bit of information, while sitting on the bean bag. Charlie just held up a finger, to stop the crazy boy's antics. "Not awesome _yet_. Someone explain this to me again."

"Okay, okay, okay," Brady waved his hands moving over to the bed to motion to each one of the girls. "Kat's been having these visions of herself that basically tell her to do ruthless violent zombie apocalyptic things to her family, specifically Elena!" Kat pursed her lips and rolled her eyes at her friend's enthusiasm for her need to kill. "Elena just unleashed this freaky awesome power to save everyone!"

"Yeah, freaky, not awesome Brady." Elena quipped.

Brady went on, throwing his hands for show at Tatia, who was sitting at the edge of the bed, still wrapped in the giant jacket as she held an annoyed puckered face. "Tatia's a freaking _werewolf_!"

The girl responded sarcastically. "Thanks, Brady."

Still in a hype, Brady concluded. "And Amara just found out that their parents have been holding the key to whatever's going on with them and that there's secrets within our midst."

Marcus nodded admittedly. "Good job Brady."

Charlie agreed. "Yes, good job, great, just one more question." Charlie pointed to Billy. "Why is he here?"

Brady seemed a bit baffled himself. "Um, ugh, well, honestly my mind kind of skimmed over that part and I-"

Billy rolled his eyes in astonishment. "I witnessed the whole thing, Brady."

Brady snapped his fingers like he was the one to figure it out. "That's right! Witness, yeah."

Marcus just watched the scene before him before giving them all a look that said _duh_. "So I have an insanely obvious question." Everyone in the room turned to look at him. "Why not just go down and ask Mr. Barthelow what he knows?" Everyone turned back to give each other a dumbfound look before filing down the stairs.

"Daddy!" The girls exclaimed all at once, when they got closer to the door. Turning the nob and entering they were surprised to be met with an empty and wrecked room. Amara was the first to turn back to her sisters. "Where'd he go?!"

* * *

Nina, Sophie, and Colin were just about to head back when they heard the cocking of machine guns. Holding their hands up and dropping their bags slowly, the three found themselves surrounded by humans. Out of the shadows, Juan Cuadarno emerged.

"Well, well, well," Colin jested spitefully. "If it isn't mister ray of sunshine himself."

"Quiet Colin!" Sophie yelled. "What do _you_ want?" The redheaded woman edged.

Juan sighed staring straight at Nina. "We want the dopplegangers." Colin bared his vampire face and hissed in defense but the humans around his area angled their guns specifically at him now. "Ah, ah, ah." Juan tisked. "I wouldn't try that senor Pache, these humans are very reliable when dealing with the vampiro community and have been equipped with the tools they need to bring them down in seconds flat." Sophie now noticed the stakes lining their belts along with vervain bombs and other tools that Sophie thought humans had long forgotten about to used to bring out vampires weaknesses. Glancing at her husband, they held a silent argument with their eyes, to which Colin lamented and brought his face begrudgingly back to normal.

"There," Juan taunted. "now that wasn't so bad, was it?"

Sophie held her gaze with her husband before turning her head back slowly to look Juan dead in the eye. "¿Qué utilidad tiene para los dopplegangers Petrova?*" The woman with the fiery eyes to match her hair spoke fluently.

Juan smirked at the girl thinking she had the upper. "¿Por qué hacer una pregunta estúpida usted ya sabe la respuesta a? Tú mismo sabes el valor de una Petrova, Sophie Pache.**"

"Eso no quiere decir que voy a desatar el caos sólo porque me asocié con la chica!***" Sophie glared back. Juan sent one of his lackeys a small nod. The man hit her with the bud of his gun, causing Sophie to fall to her knees. Realizing she had no way out of this situation, Sophie didn't defend herself.

Juan crouched down in front of her smiling. "Mi querido , usted ya hizo desatar el caos.^" He said, moving his eyes for Sophie to follow to Nina as a group of well bodied men tied her hands behind her back. "Usted arreglado, usted y los viajeros . Deja que vivo, lo dejó a recaudar más , y ahora es el momento de dejarlo.^^" Standing back up, ordered his little followers. "We bring them with us!" He looked straight into the eyes of a struggling Nina. "They'll lead los diablillos straight here." Nina hung her head feigning defeat.

What these people didn't realize is that she was tapping into a chant she had thought she had forgotten. Whispering it so quietly, only Colin and Sophie could hear what she was doing as Juan signaled the people to move out. Having just enough time, Nina finished before the two men flanked on either side of her forcefully pushed her to get moving.

"I didn't know you spoke Spanish...?" Colin quipped.

Sophie rolled her eyes at the insaneness of the situation. "Shut it, Colin."

* * *

Elena paced back and forth biting her nails in worry. "This...is _not good_."

"Uh, guys...?" Amara tried to speak as she and Marcus noticed something from underneath the bed.

Kat rolled her eyes. "No shit, Sherlock."

Amara motioned for Billy and Brady to help Marcus move the bed. The youngest twin tried to get her sister's attention again. "Excuse me, guys?"

"How could we let this happen?" Tatia sighed. "This doesn't happen to people like us!"

Shaking her head for Charlie to come over, Amara and her pulled open the hatch to the hidden door. Pointing to the contents inside, Amara tried again. "Listen guys, I _really_ think you should come take a look at-"

"We were stupid!" Elena started punishing herself. "We never should have gone to the fair in the first place! I-"

" _ **Guys!"**_ Amara raised her voice. Suddenly, every eye was on her. Clearing her voice she began. "I think you should take a look at this stuff."

Digging around in their father's stuff, the girls pulled out jars of strange herbs and concoctions but what Charlie pulled out changed the pace of the game. "Katherine Pierce." She mumbled to herself.

Kat whipped her head around. " _What!?_ "

Tatia, Amara, and Elena scooted themselves over as Charlie pointed to the name that was etched on the old picture. "Right here, it says Katherine Pierce." Charlie explained before having the picture ripped out her hands for Kat to examine. "Is that an old relative you were named after Kat?"

"No." Kat mumbled staring at the old photograph.

"Wait, Pierce?" Amara suddenly remembered. "That's the name Daddy mentioned before he went missing!"

Billy cut in. "Do you think who ever he was talking to has any idea about what's going on?"

Amara nodded her head in vigor. "I'm sure of it."

"You guys," Kat's voice quivered. Everyone moved their gaze to her in worry. "you know those visions I've been having, of me killing Elena? I think she's me."

* * *

Justin's dad grabbed the last of his bags and put them in the trunk of the truck. Taking this moment, Justin ran outside and dropped some of his stuff in there too.

"And where do you think those are going?" Justin's dad folded his arms giving his son a stern look.

Justin thought his plan may have a little bit of gaps to it. "With you."

"It's going to be pretty useless to be driving around bags I'm not going to need." His dad told him as he walked to the drivers side of the car.

"Dad, please, let me come with you!" Justin pleaded following his dad to the front. "I know you say it's too dangerous, but-" His father turned to glare at his son. Justin gulped however, he was suddenly struck with a brilliant thought. "-But you were around my age when you started-"

"Started what?" His father countered. "Loosing my innocence? Having to grow up faster than normal kids? How about watching people I knew and loved die, get turned into monsters, or get hunted down by people like us? And you want to _join me_?! Nuh-uh, _not_ going to happen!"

His father started to open the car but Justin shut it with a force he didn't know he had. "Would you just listen to me!" His dad raised an eyebrow at his son's defiance. Justin pointed his finger at the man. "Now you need me, whether you like it or not." His father opened his mouth ready to counter but Justin was ready for it. "Don't try to argue with me because it's not going to work, Dad. Now I know that you can get any old person to help you but I'm the only one they've come to." At the mention of _them_ thousands of corpses appeared, surrounding them in the front yard, unseen by anyone but Justin. The teenager gulped again, he'd never seen so many all in one place. "And I have a feeling that it's _only_ going to be me they'll want to talk to." He said with certainty.

His dad got put on his defensive pose crossing his arms gaze zeroing in on Justin. "Oh yeah, and what makes you so special?"

"I don't know."Justin admitted and truly he didn't, he just had a feeling that it had to be him. "But I'm the only one who's going to able to get you- us, there." Justin steeled his eyes, choosing not to back down. For a moment, it was like looking at two of the same people except one was older and the other a young teen.

Justin's father broke first. "Get in." He said as he opened the door and started up the truck.

Justin threw his fist in the air in triumph and did a celebratory dance, sprinting to the passengers side he sat down as they took off. "Hey, do you think I could drive the truck half way?"

His father sighed. "Don't push your luck."

* * *

After Tatia put on some clothes and the other made excuses to their already frantic parents on why they would be staying over at the Petrova's for the day, everyone hopped in a car and drove down to the trail that led them back to the fair grounds. Getting out and walking through the woods, the others were silent as they passed the black body bags littering the path.

"I don't remember seeing this much death coming home." Elena mumbled.

"I just remembered want to _get_ home." Tatia said but abruptly stopped in front of everyone.

"Everything okay in there, Dog-breath?" Kat waved her hand up and down in front of her older sister's face.

Tatia only responded with a whisper. "I killed him." Everyone followed Tatia's line of sight. There to the side, a little up ahead, some forensic scientists were taking notes and carefully removing a body that was impaled on a jagged tree stump. Tatia didn't realize who it was last night but now, during the day, the identity of the boy she murdered became clear. It was Mason Woodrow, a boy that Kat had seriously dated last year but they mutually broke up because they had trust issues. She didn't know the guy personally but she had a feeling that they're was more to the breakup than Kat let on. Tatia had this sort of instinct that the reason Kat didn't trust Mason was because of his weird lingering sneaky-not-so-sneaky gazes, and if there is one thing Tatia trusted, it was her instincts. Turning to face her sister tears pooling up in her eyes Tatia tried to apologize. "I'm _so_ sorry Kat!"

Kat squeezed Tatia's mid-arm. "It's fine." She sighed. "Let's just...let's keep going." Kat spoke walking off, not waiting for the others. Following her lead, they all went ahead. All but Tatia and Elena.

Seeing that the forensic scientists were all taking a break now, off to the side, and not paying any attention to the body Tatia walked closer, crouching down, fingers to her lips trying to keep her from balling. "I'm sorry." She whispered to his face that was still etched with shock from the pain.

Kneeling next to her sister, Elena put her arms around her shoulders trying to lessen the hurt. "It's alright Tatia, let's go." Taking one last look, Tatia got up with Elena and followed the others into the clearing.

The authorities were everywhere, taking statements from people who had shown back up, moving and gathering evidence and debris, and examining and moving body bags into the ambulances that were parked around the field. The group tensed up in fear.

" _This_ is what you guys ran through last?" Marcus asked worriedly. The three that were there when the pandemonium went down nodded slowly. Marcus thought he was going to faint. "Glad I stayed home jacking off. Ow!" He looked to his side to see Charlie glaring at him. "God." He sighed rubbing his arm from where the girl punched him.

Tatia took the lead. "Okay spread out. Search for any clues that the police might have missed that could tell us what those things were that attacked you guys last night," Tatia held up a hand to silence Brady before he could say something incredibly stupid that he would regret. "that _wasn't me_ , and take pictures on your phones." Separating in every direction, the kids started their little mission.

Amara came upon a mixture of relief and bafflement when she saw Drix animatedly talking to Detective Oscars while the detective nodded scratching down information in his notepad. Noticing her, Drix ended the conversation with the officer and briskly walked over to the girl.

"Hey," He greeted, a little winded, running a hand through his black hair.

"Hey," She said back, curiously glancing over his shoulder to watch Detective Oscars see their encounter then move on.

Drix sighed, surprised. "You're okay." he motioned a hand, signaling that she was indeed standing in front of him and not in a body bag.

"Yeah, um," Amara's eyes strayed over to her sisters Tatia and Elena as they searched together aways from her and Drix. Turning her attention back to the boy, Amara explained. "I made it out just before it all started so..." Curiosity getting the best of her, Amara watched Drix. "What was that all about?" She inclined her head toward the Detective as he gathered a statement from another victim.

"That, oh, I ugh dropped my camera trying to get away last night," Drix told her running a hand through his hair again. "It had some pretty important pictures on it."

Amara straightened up, listening with more apt attention now. "Do you think you caught whatever did this on there?"

"Maybe." Drix shrugged. "Or at least that's what Oscars is hoping for." Putting his hands in his pocket, Drix bent his head a bit to watch his shoes as he balanced his weight from foot to foot then peeked out from under his eyelids to stare at her. "I'm more concerned with the other pictures on the camera." He insinuated with a warm smile.

For the first time in the past several hours, Amara smiled back with a light laugh as if they were sharing an inside joke. It was shortly lived when Kat chose the moment to enter. "None of us are finding anything and are going to head back to the house in a short while." Amara and Drix averted their gazes instantly, as if they were caught in the act. "Am I interrupting something?" Kat's eyes moved back and forth between the two, mouth slowly curving into a knowing grin.

Amara was about to explain. "I-"

"No, not at all." Drix rushed out thrusting his hand forward for the older twin to shake. "Drix Anson." He told her, refusing to meet her eyes.

"Kat Petrova." Kat said slowly, shaking his hand wondering what the hell was his problem.

Drix curtly nodded, dropping his hand and turning his attention over to the other girl. "I think I see Brady over there, I'm going to see if he has the keys to the Photography Room. Maybe find some copies I can put up before I loose half my set for Thursday." He explained to Amara before giving her a quick smile and walking off.

Amara watched him go before turning and walking off with Kat to meet Elena and Tatia on the other side. "What was that?" Kat asked innocently.

"Drix was just checking up on me." Amara told her pretending not to care.

Kat wrinkled her nose in banter. "I don't know it kind of looked like he was checking you out to me. Oh and you were _so_ reciprocating." Amara rolled her eyes at her sister's craziness. "Which I don't blame you." She shimmied her shoulder, bumping Amara's in suggestion.

Amara rolled her eyes. "Shouldn't we be focusing on the matter at hand? Like, why Tatia is turning into a wolf, how come Elena can suddenly control fire, and what about the fact that, after all these years, you're unexpectedly getting repressed memories from a woman that shares your face."

" _Our_ face, 'Mara, our face." Kat taunted, trying to lighten the mood, choosing to not think about that.

"Well, she has _your_ name." Amara countered.

"Technically my name is Ekaterina but..."

"My point is we have too much on our plates right now." Amara told Kat while watching Drix and Brady talk off in the distance. "We need to take care of what's going on at this moment. Deal with boys later."

"Whatever you say." Kat sing-songed. "But if it were me. I'd totally hit that right now."

Amara gasped "Kat!"

The girl laughed. "Oh you know you were thinking it!"

* * *

 _Just around the outside border of Mystic Falls, Virginia..._

Tony knew this was the absolute worst time to leave the girls but if what Danjou said over the phone was true, it wouldn't matter. For once in a long time, since his unofficial banishment, the Travelers needed _his_ help with a problem. A problem that, he, the Travelers right hand wolf pack, and their _left_ hand secret wolf pack, had thought they had taken care of long ago.

Danjou patted him on the shoulder as they walked further into the green woods. "Thanks for coming Tony."

The man nodded. "It must be of impending doom if you call on the banished man _and_ the disgraced pack to handle a situation."

"Barthelow," A new voice cut in. "now we truly have the A Team." A young appearing man bit out sarcastically.

Tony was going to retort back. "Ni-"

"I go by Louis now." The blond man interrupted, crossing his arms.

Tony understood sadly. "Louis. The rest of the pack?" Louis motioned them to follow after. They heard the screams ten paces before getting into the tent. Tony gestured with his head that he had seen the rest of Danjou's pack, before heading into the domed tent. The Tent of the Disgraced Wolves.

Moving forward Tony examined the scene in front of him. On the ground, paler than the young man had ever been before, was the middle son of the pack Elias. He was panting and every so often screaming in pain, trying to force whatever was eating at him to realize who it was going up against and how it wasn't going to win. Elias' girlfriend held onto his grip as grunted, riding out the next wave of torture. Tony's eyes traveled to the source of misery. A gaping circular wound that seemed to be burrowed deep above Elias' right hip. The thing that struck this as most definitely odd and supernatural: the wound was turning the torn skin around it into graying ash and the blood was no longer red but tar black with the veins around the wound showing through the skin, clear as day, before fading into his body, giving Tony the impression that whatever this was hadn't reached the rest of Elias' system yet. Unfortunately, if Tony couldn't figure out what it was and how to fix it that means the pain Elias is feeling now won't be the worst of it.

Louis stood there putting up a front, when Tony knew that it was tearing him up inside to see one of his little brothers in pain. "We found him like this after coming back from a lead given out by a tip in Kentucky involving your daughters' _situation_ and some stuff going down in New Orleans. When we got to Kentucky, our lead was no where from where he said he'd be so we realized it must be a trap. We had left Elias in charge with Meg, Jeremiah, and Serena on guard of the boundary. Make sure no one who's not supposed to get in the town actually gets in. After the last several years of Big Bads coming and going as they pleased without anyone to properly keep it safe, well, it was our home _first_ , you know?" Tony kept on listening thinking how the Travelers must have thought it relevant towards the girls but to dangerous and willing to keep them out of it, to call Tony out of retirement other wise he wouldn't be here. Antony Barthelow was expendable, the Petrova Doppleganger line was not. "When got back, Serena was dead and Elias...well look at him..."

Tony turned to Louis, since he was the Alpha. "I've never dealt with curing a werewolf, much less this, whatever this is."

Louis became dangerously close to the already semi self-conscious ex Traveler in the middle of not one but two packs of werewolves. "I don't care what you do to my little brother." Louis growled though Tony suspected that wasn't true. "Get him better or get him to shut up." And with that Louis stomped off almost running into his youngest brother of this already off center and now probably more unbalanced pack, Bastian.

Tony watched from the corner of his eye the second youngest of the pack (succeeding Jeremiah), Bastian. 'The boy was a lithe but lethal', as the other Travelers had described to him once. He had muscle to him, though it was well hidden but it didn't escape Tony that the teen could probably beat him to a pulp and kill Danjou's Alpha (who was a _huge_ intimidating guy) with the amount of rigorous training their parents instilled on Bastian and his brothers.

Why Tony may not have been part of the Travelers that brought them back, but he was part of the ones that subdued them. No, Tony thought subdued was making it seem like the Travelers had the upper hand in that battle of chess. More like struck a bargain with them to gain them as allies, that was more like it. Of course, Tony remembers they had tried attacking the pack first to make them see the error of their ways and though the Travelers were successful in that battle Tony couldn't help but think the pack _let them win_. Tony heard that it took seven Travelers to knock out Bastian. Luckily Tony wasn't part of the group of to take down that little werewolf but his brother, Elias. Tony couldn't help but muse that's another reason the Travelers sent him, when they can barely stand him now. The former Traveler had been at the peak of his teachings back then and had used a counter spell that was long forgotten, for some would deem silly, but that's what Tony used to bring down the final blow to Elias. When his other fellow Travelers had questioned him about it, Tony just said he had thought of a new spell altogether and to this day no one had figured it out. While it had taken five Travelers to bring down Elias, Tony was still amazed that the teen, Bastian, was more on par with the oldest brother Louis, who was subjected to eleven Travelers, than Elias who only needed four.

Bastian was the same age as his daughters are, so Tony couldn't help but feel a kindred-ship for the kid. He held a look of trust and loyalty about him, with his golden blond hair and air of confidence that most people have to find in lifetimes. But Tony knew, behind those dark curious eyes he held in more rage like that of the equivalence of Klaus. A scary thought, Tony imagined.

"Bastian!" Louis yelled, stirring Tony from his thoughts. Bastian turned to his Alpha brother in obedience. "Keep an eye on the Barthelow man. Anything worth suspicion and you have my permission to follow through with your suggestion." The young man nodded doing as he was told. Removing his shoulder bag and making himself comfortable, sitting against the dome of the tent, Bastian was on the other side of Elias and Tony, holding a watchful eye as he ate his peach. "Everyone else who isn't useful anymore... _ **Out!**_ " Moving like a well oiled machine, everyone scurried out of the tent. However, Tony became aware that when he didn't hear anything outside the tent, Louis must have made everyone, including Danjou's pack, leave the area to take care of some things. Tony was completely alone...with two mass murderers, the suffering Elias, and the teen psycho, Bastian.

"You want to see your girls again?" Bastian's English accent broke Tony's trance but brought him stiff on edge. "Fix him and I won't sniff them out and kill them."

* * *

The teens were standing in front of the girls' house in a circle.

"So right now all we have to go on is, Katherine Pierce, the name Gilbert, Covington, Mystic Falls, and New Orleans." Elena listed off.

"And the fact that your Dad mysteriously disappeared with the answers," Charlie added.

Marcus put in his two cents. "The coincidence that these weird things attacking, happen the _same_ night as you guys getting your freaky powers,"

"And that going to the authorities would basically make us all the main suspects and probably have us thrown in jail or put into an insane asylum." Billy ended.

Kat raised her hand. "I'm actually hearing voices from my head." She pointed to herself. "So it's probably insane asylum for me."

"So go to it, follow the leads." A new but familiar voice cut in. The group turned to face Drix as he walked up their front yard.

"How did you know where we live?" Tatia got on the defensive.

Drix explained himself. "It's not hard. You guys are 10 minutes away from the fair grounds, I mean everyone is in this town. Plus, you have to be in the direction of going towards the school, otherwise you'd be going to Clark High not Adams, and you guys are all standing in front of the house...not so inconspicuously." To that the group all together looked at their feet in embarrassment and cleared their throats. "Oh and Brady told me everything."

Marcus gasped. Charlie punched her friend in the arm. "Brady!"

"Ow!"

Billy turned on him. "You did what?!"

Kat inclined to speak. "Let me reiterate. Patrick Star told Nancy Drew all our little secrets and now we're one step closer to getting me to that funny farm." Elena just facepalmed herself.

"Well listen up Hardy Boys," Drix grabbed their attention. "Whatever it is you're planning on doing, I want in, and I've got a feeling you want to face these problems head on." The girls shifted their weight knowing he was thinking what they were thinking. "So wherever you're going, I'm going." Drix threw a hopeful glance at Amara as she sent him a small smile.

"Not going to happen." Tatia spit out.

Amara whined. "Oh come on, Tatia."

Tatia shrugged. "Even if we were to let you come along, we don't know how to get there!"

"From all the moving I've done, I've grown up all up and down the east coast." Drix reasoned. "I know these places like the back of my hand."

Brady cut in. "Plus, my family took a trip to Mystic Falls once for Spring Break." Brady delved further. "Charlie, Billy, and I could go one way and you girls could go the other."

"Wait, why me?" Billy asked confounded.

"I need _someone_ to keep me from killing the boy." Charlie reasoned then motioned to Marcus. "And he isn't much better."

"Okay...?"

Marcus nodded. "Right, and I can stay here, cover for you guys, and look up info."

Elena stepped in. "Wait guys, that's right, what about school?"

The teens were quiet for a bit before Charlie smiled. "Actually, I think I know someone who can help with that."

* * *

"No." Kat demanded.

"You aren't my favorite person either, honey" Carlotta the nurse droned glaring back at the snarky girl.

"What are you even doing at the school, on a Saturday?" Kat questioned suspiciously.

Carlotta raised an eyebrow. "I could ask you the same thing." She glanced at Kat's friends and sisters, wondering if the young girl was always like this or just with her. "Unfortunately, I'm backed up with paperwork on files with girls who faint without any explanation."

"I was dehydrated." Kat bit back.

" _I'm_ the school nurse." Carlotta pointed to herself. "and _you_ didn't show any signs of dehydration, sweet pea."

Kat turned to her friends and family with an agitated look on her face. "I refuse."

"Come on, Kat!" Charlie wined. "Carlotta is a family friend and if anyone can legally cover our asses, it sure as hell ain't going to be Marcus." She pointed with her thumb over her shoulder.

"Hey!" Marcus omitted a little offended.

Charlie turned her head around giving Marcus and apologetic look. "Sorry, Charlie." she handed him her signature catchphrase to which the boy just rolled his eyes, letting it go.

Carlotta proceeded to go on. "Besides, if you children are going to go on this cross country journey you're going to need some heavy duty write up slips to make sure the dean doesn't go looking for a werewolf and her two faced sister."

"You told her?!" Tatia cornered Charlie. Elena just facepalmed again.

"I may have called her on the ride over here." Charlie said sheepishly.

Drix looked to Amara. "Can no one keep a secret in this group?" Amara just shrugged.

"Evidently." Carlotta deadpanned. "You're going need to patch your laptop feed to mine. If we're going to go through with this, I'm going to need a way to contact you all at any given time." She told them moving to her computer.

"Why would you help us?" Billy asked the question everyone was dying to have answered.

Drix didn't like where this was going. "Yeah, why should we trust you?" Tatia rolled her eyes at his voice.

Carlotta stood straight and stared at them. "I had a daughter I lost to the likes of you," She pointed at Tatia who avoided her gaze. "Authorities didn't believe me when I told them we were attacked by her best friend, who suddenly turned into a giant wolf. Locked my husband up, convinced that he did it." Carlotta stepped forward towards the silent group. "Her friend regretted it since that day and I haven't heard a word from the girl since. If I could stop it, turn back time, maybe even right the wrongs of what happened that night I would, but I can't." She told them. "If I can help you figure out how to control this thing, so that you never kill again, than I will." Carlotta told Tatia. "And if I have to help the rest of you youngsters fight off these repressed monsters, so you don't turn into them, then that's a bonus." She looked at every one of their faces. "But I will not stand by and see you be eaten up inside with pain."

Kat felt some guilt inside, despite finding Carlotta antagonizing at times, she really was a good person. "Alright." Kat stepped forward. "So are we going to do this or what?"

They jumped into action. Marcus all but ran over to the nurses computer, typing in Charlie's and Amara's Skype names to lock in. Billy, Charlie, and Brady were looking at the map on the wall trying to recall how to get to Mystic Falls. Kat was bantering with Carlotta about what kind of sickness she was going to stick her with. While, Elena and Kat started pulling out books on basic survival and first aid, to bring along with them. Out of the corner of her eye, Tatia saw Amara and Drix slowly walk out back to the car. Narrowing her gaze, she handed some books to Elena before walking out after them.

"I wanted to thank you for helping us." Amara said as they walked to the car. "I know you're going to have to make up an excuse to you're family as to why you won't be coming home."

Drix shrugged. "That's okay." He said sending her a warm smile. "They probably won't even realize that I'm gone." He told her as they leaned up against the car.

"Oh, why's that?" Amara questioned curiously.

Drix looked off into the distance. "My family's a little messed up and a whole lot self centered."

Amara gave him a pointed look. "Really? Have you seen my family as of late? I wouldn't be surprised if they fell to their knees and cra-" Amara was cut off as Drix took her by the chin and kissed her. Reciprocating, Amara kissed him back slowly, then pulled away as he held her chin both of them smiling.

"Sorry." He said but he didn't look sorry to Amara.

"'s s'okay." She lightly slurred, drunk off the giddiness that was floating through her. Trying to be rational, she moved his hand away from her chin. "We should probably go back inside." She whispered.

"Yeah, probably." He ran a hand through his hair but neither attempted to move away. They were just about to lean in for another, when Tatia appeared with the group in tow.

"Well," Tatia said interrupting. "We're good to go!" She told them as the two put some space between each other, before Tatia positioned herself so that she was blocking the two.

"So we'll head to Mystic Falls," Charlie began.

Elena went on. "And we'll go around to New Orleans,"

"And we'll both meet up in Covington." Drix finished waiting for any of the others to say anything else.

Billy looked around. "Let's move out then."

Packing up in their respective vehicles, Tatia waited until Amara went to help Kat with the trunk before narrowing her eyes at Drix. "Whatever game you're playing, it's not going to work. I always protect my sisters." she whispered to him.

"Careful Tat', you might just let that wolf out." He told her, crossing his arms, threatening back. "Besides, I love a good game and I haven't had a good opponent in forever." Drix ended walking to his car's driver's door.

Tatia stood there for a bit, then opened the door to the back seats as the rest of her sisters piled in, with Kat and Elena on either side of her and Amara up at the front with the map.

Marcus and Carlotta stood at the front of the school building with Marcus waving as they pulled out.

"Alright guys," Elena said in the car, as they got on the road.

"First stop," Kat helped.

"New Orleans." Drix ended, gripping the steering wheel.

* * *

"Here?" Justin's father questioned as they got out of the car.

Justin nodded as he saw the other corpse, who led the way, disappear before Justin's eyes. "This is the place." Justin answered as they walked a couple paces inward.

Hearing guns cock, Justin and his father raised their hands above their head as civilians surrounded them. "To bad you won't get very far." an old man said then knocked them out.

When Justin's father came to, he found that he was tied to a poll. "Try not to struggle," A woman, with what Justin's dad heard as a familiar voice, on the other side of the poll said. "I don't know what kind of enchantment they put on these ropes but the more you struggle the tighter they become." She explained.

"I'm human," The man answered back. "They shouldn't work the same way for me. What are you?"

"Different." The woman answered back as she felt him trying to loosen the reigns on his ties.

"Witch?" He egged on.

"No."

"Werewolf?"

"God no."

"Vampire?"

"Not on my life!" She defended. The man rolled his eyes. "Well lady, I've seen every creature on the face of this earth. You've got to be something?"

The woman sighed. "I'm just me. Just a mother who wants to get home wants to get home to her four daughters and loving husband."

"Don't worry, I'm going to get us out of here." he reassured her, bands loosening just a little.

"What type of human are you?" Nina asked, not wanting to be in silence again.

"Hunter." He answered, finally getting the bands undone. "Name's Jeremy Gilbert." At that, Nina's eyes widened with recognition. Feeling his sore wrists, Jeremy looked at her form tied at the back. "Now let's get you out of here."

Nina panicked. "No! Wait!" He unstrapped her as she rushed to the shadows of their little cell.

Jeremy stepped forward a bit suspicious but then his eyes widened, themselves in confusion. "Elena?"

Nina gulped.

* * *

 **AN:/ Okay, so that was a bit longer of a chapter. I hope I kept your interest all the way through! Please review and tell me what you think, answer any question, or if you have any suggestions I may work them into the story. For those of you who don't speak spanish or want to go and search up the translations here they are:**

 ***How useful are the Petrova Dopplegangers to you?**

 ****Why ask a stupid question you already know the answer to? You yourself know the value of a Petrova, Sophie Pache.**

 *****That doesn't mean I'm going to wreak havoc just because I associated with the girl!**

 **^My dear, you already did wreak havoc.**

 **^^You managed, you and the Travelers. Let one live, let one raise more, and now it's time to end it.**

 **With the the threat of dark Magik and the Devil's army looming over their heads will Sophie and Colin get out of the conservative Juan Cuadarno's clutches? Who are the Disgraced Wolf Pack and what do they have to do with Travelers, Tony, the girls, and Mystic Falls? With the gang separating will they find the answers they need? Will Marcus and Carlotta's excuses be enough to silence some nosy teachers and family? What game is Drix _really_ playing at? Can the girls trust him? What happened to Justin Gilbert? Jeremy Gilbert's got some questions of his own. All this and more is leading up to the reintroduction of some old characters but more new threats are making their way to the girls. Don't believe there is just one enemy...**

 **Review and get a mention as a character in the next chapter ;)**


	5. And Fear Not The Girl Said

Tony watched Bastian watch Tony watch him. "Watcha doing there, Traveler?" The teen asked as Tony sprinkled some shredded root all over Elias wound, who had passed out from the pain.

Tony sighed, trying to figure out where to find common ground with a kid that's killed more people in two life times than Tony's had enough moments to breath. "I'm numbing the wound. Burning off anything that might cause more infections from getting in. And I'm _not_ a Traveler."

Bastian took another bite of his second peach. "That's not what I remember." Tony stilled, thinking back to a time before the girls, before he had given a thought to entangling himself with Nina, back when he was part of the Traveler's circle. Thinking about it now, the anti-aging curse they inflicted on this pack may have been an error on their part. Bastian went on. "Why I remember you being apart of the lot that took us down." The 17 year old edged closer, poking a finger into Tony's chest from across his brother's unconscious body. "We would have torn out your larynx, had Elias not swayed Louis that giving you Travelers the illusion that we're on your side could be useful." Tony tried to hide the shiver that ran down his spine when the kid described Tony's insides. He must not have hid it very well because the young man smirked for a second but then dropped it and scooted back over to the tent wall, continuing to eat his fruit. "Thus far, I'm not seeing the usefulness."

"I'm guessing Elias' the passive one in your family, considering you guys are trained killers." When Bastian didn't answer, Tony figured he guessed right. "This lead you were following, what was it?"

"You know that's not exactly how this thing works," Bastian mused. "How's your wife, hmm? Good, yeah? Still one of those 8th wonders of the world and all that?" Bastian toyed with Tony, giving him his family's signature smirk. One that had Tony thinking that it wasn't just cats that played with their food, apparently dogs did too. Tony refused to back down, choosing to glare at the little prince rather than give him what he wants. "I'm bored myself though." Bastian's smirk widened. "So maybe I'll give you a little insight as to what we've found and are looking for." Tony waited listening. "Your daughters, _Traveler_ , The Petrova Dopplegangers, are like me and my pack in the fact that they are starting the rewind button on life." Bastian explained, talking down to Tony as if he were a child but considering the year Bastian was actually born, Tony let the offense slide...for now. "Unlike us however, the girls have no recollection of what they did in their past lives. Another thing, they weren't brought back as they were and forced to stay that way until the end of time." Bastian said, masking spite behind a unsettling grin. "No see, you Travelers hadn't perfected the reincarnate spell when you brought us back then so we...well we have all our memories. The good, the bad, and the torturous." Bastian listed off in mock happiness. "And the girls, they get to age, don't they?" The young man waved his hand already knowing that Tony wasn't going to answer. "Well anyway, your wife and her friends uncovered that thing in Covington right?"

Tony was shocked. "How did you know about that? Nina just went down there yesterday."

Bastian rolled his eyes at how easily it was to play the man. "Don't worry about that, it's not important to this any matter. Lucifer's Cemetery, if you must know, that's what it's called. Going on, it guards the Fountain of Youth, hnm?" Bastian smiled impressed by his own amount of knowledge, hoping that a man who was part of group that Louis always said was beneath them would find it impressive too.

Tony shook his head in bafflement. "The Fountain of Youth? That's-that's just a story right?" Bastian raised an eyebrow, giving Tony a look that translated to _'Are you serious or just brain dead?'_ "Right," Tony realized who he was talking to. "Werewolves, vampires, witches. No such thing as stories, got it."

"Now listen up, because this part _is_ important. The Fountain of Youth is held in the middle of Lucifer's Cemetery. The beings that were encompassed in the cemetery were known as the Devil's Army. They are sworn to guard the Fountain for all of eternity." The boy paused letting that settle in with the ex-Traveler. " _Unless_ uncovered and a being harboring great darkness presents itself as a daemonic leader."

"And you think the Originals, probably Klaus, may be that leader? I mean that's why you figured it was connected to New Orleans, right?" Tony guessed.

Bastian seemed as though he was trying to find the right words to phrase what he was about to say next and that scared Tony since most of this kid's upbringing was stressed in diplomacy. "We believe that the leader is something _like_ the Originals but from what we hear it's something of the likes that not even Louis has seen or heard of before."

Tony knew that was bad, especially since his daughters were graced with the end of the world prophesy but Tony couldn't help being a little curious. "Okay, so what does this have to do with my girls?"

Bastian gritted his teeth in agitation. "Patience, Barthelow. We wouldn't want to get someone like me irate." Tony held his tongue. "As I was saying, Lucifer's Cemetery is not of importance, though I do stress you should discuss with Louis about what you and your Travelers should do about this supposed daemonic entity. What is of importance is the Fountain."

Tony wasn't following. "Okay...?"

Bastian rolled his eyes. "With the Devil's Army gone, following the orders of their daemon leader no doubt, the Fountain of Youth is left unguarded for anyone and anything to get there hands on."

"So you're pack is thinking that if the Originals aren't harboring the deeds of a daemon then they're definitely going to try and get their hands on the Fountain." Tony pulled it all together.

"Perhaps, or perhaps not." Bastian stared at Tony with deadly eyes. "Haven't you ever wondered, Barthelow, why the Travelers never talk about the _men_ who helped keep the Petrova line going?"

Tony's eyes widened in horror. If his daughters weren't before, they certainly were targets now.

* * *

Checking into the little bed and breakfast the girls got two rooms for them and Drix. Going downstairs to the lobby, they discussed plans about what they were going to do.

"I say we split up and cover more ground." Tatia suggested.

Drix nodded. "I agree, the more we cover the better." Drix sent her an innocent smile but Tatia knew it was all for show.

"Okay..." Kat cut in. "Tatia and I will take to the streets and you three can go searching through the library and historical museums." She looked to her older twin who still had a sour face. "Sound fair?"

Tatia uncrossed her arms and led her and Kat outside. "I don't like it." Tatia spoke watching as the three crossed the street.

"Well you can think about chomping on Amara's bf later. We have bigger fish to fry." Kat said before leading her sister into a local store. "For instance, how hot we would look in these outfits." Kat smirked at her sister throwing some clothes her way.

Tatia smiled deviously. "I do need something after my last turn." About a half hour later they walked out with several bags that had articles of clothing in it. " _Now_ we need to get down to business, Kat."

The other girl pouted as they walked down the bustling streets of New Orleans. Unaware of a man catching site of the beautiful and _extremely_ stupid girls. "A reading ladies?"

Tatia and Kat shared a glance of interest. "You don't look like a fortune teller?" Kat smirked.

"Well don't you know sister? All the handsome guys are doing it these days." Tatia played along with the man as his grin widened at the girls feisty nature. "What do they call it again? Oh right, con artist." The older twin smiled innocently.

The charming man chuckled slightly. "Ha, I am known to have a little gypsy on my mother's side."

Before Kat could stop herself the words came spilling out. " _Pot fața locului un jongler când văd unul._ *" Tatia and Kat both looked baffled at Kat's sudden outburst, especially since it was from a language none of the girls ever learned before.

The man's eyes shifted a little with an uneasy smile. "Is that a yes for the reading?"

"Sure," Tatia answered putting in dollar coins to the tin can. "Tell us what you know."

"Beauty, obviously. I mean let me tell you, the dames in New Orleans got nothing on you fine ladies." The man drawled kissing both their hands flirtatiously. Had it been Amara and Elena the girls would have giggled but Tatia and Kat just rolled their eyes goodnaturedly to one another. "But let's get some names, shall we?"

Tatia laughed inside with Kat as they both knew that their names were a bit of a mouthful. The charming man glanced between them settling on the girl with the big curls to her hair instead of the ringlet small ones. " _Your_ name is..." The man put his fingers to the temples of his head for dramatics. Then snapped his fingers at the girl assuming he knew the answer. " _Elena_."

Kat and Tatia turned their heads at one another impressed then gave their attention back to the wrong man. "Not quite. Name's Kat." The girl winked.

The man looked befuddled. "Then what's your name?" he waved his hands over to the other girl.

"Tatia." She told him, a little worried that the man seemed so flustered at the thought of being wrong.

The man's eyes increased with recognition. "Tatia..." He said slowly unsure how to take this next step.

"We have a twin sister, Elena" Kat explained, observing as his shock enhanced.

"Huh, really?" The man tried to wrap his head around that.

"And another twin," Tatia went on. "If you can guess her name then I'll give you another coin." Tatia baited, having too much fun seeing his reaction.

The man was struck blank having been blindsided by this new amount of info that would no doubt make him very important, again, and Klaus a not so happy camper. "Now I'm all confounded with the thought of four beautiful angels in my midsts." He put on an enigmatic face. "The voodoo isn't coming so strong with my pulse this way." He gazed at them.

Kat rolled her eyes with her own smirk, knowing that Tatia enjoyed the older man's company. He was suave, daring, and a hint of mischief was sitting in his eyes, just the type Tatia liked to surround herself with but not the kind she'd date. Her sister's taste in men was more complicated than that. "Amara." Kat told him as Tatia dropped another coin in his can just because she was having too much fun.

The man appeared amused, still grinning like an alligator about to play his prey. "Huh, never would have guessed."

Tatia now turned on the man with a curious and playful gaze. "Now, if we were to try and find some answers in this big city, asking questions with questions, who should we be talking to Mr...?"

The man smiled figuring out how he wanted to play this now. "Excuse my horrible manners ladies, my momma would probably whack me over the head for not introducing myself."

Kat held her smirk. "I bet you don't even have a mother."

"And thank goodness for that baby-doll," They shared a laugh. "The name's Marcel Gerard, and the people you need to talk to are the Mikaelson family."

"Mikaelsons?" Kat asked feeling her heart race in two different directions, with fear and longing, something she couldn't explain but she thought she was just full of surprises today.

"Kind of the big wigs of the place, they all but run New Orleans," Marcel smiled. "When you can't count on the mayor, you look to the Mikaelsons."

"Great," Kat sighed, turning to her sister in irritation. "Now we're going to have to figure out a way to rub shoulders with the royalty of the city."

"A trait I have no doubt you and your sisters will find a way to manage on your own gypsy girl." Marcel bowed for theatrically. "But you just so happen to be talking to one of the Mikaelson's VIP's when it comes to there inner circle." Tatia and Kat raised their eyebrows at the man who had just tried to con them a few seconds ago. "It would be a misjudgment, on my part, not to show you off to _the_ family of this city."

"Okay," Tatia agreed. "What do we have to do?"

Marcel's charming smile was back again. "Bring you and your sisters to the harvest festival tonight," Tatia and Kat shared a worrisome glance, knowing their luck with festivals. "It's in the center park, costume party. The oldest brother loves the arts and putting on a show." Marcel divulged.

Kat laughed pointedly agaze at him. "I'm beginning to think all Orleaners do."

"But make sure you girls find me first," Marcel dangled the bait, knowing that they won't listen. "Otherwise, I can't get praised for finding such magnificent young women."

"Alright." Kat played.

"See you then, Marcel." Tatia blew a kiss to which the man caught, pretending to hold it to his chest as the girls walked off.

"The charming little snake, isn't he?" Kat mused as they walked together down the road.

Tatia hummed. "Oh yeah."

"We going to trust him?"

Tatia laughed. "Oh no."

* * *

Jeremy Gilbert paced the cell as Nina Petrova stood in the corner, biting her lip, watching him. "So you're another doppleganger?" Nina nodded slowly, fearing that his head might explode from overload. "Tell me how that works again."

"Um well, when Katherine gave birth to Nadia, Nadia gave birth to two girls herself. One who spawned to Isobel and Elena and the other branched off to spawn to me and my ancestors. When the Travelers found out the could perfect the reincarnate spell they leaped at the chance of having more dopplegangers."

Jeremy rubbed his eyes in defeat. "Uh-huh, and you thought this was _a good idea!_ "

"It doesn't matter what I think!" Nina yelled back. "What's done is done. Elena, Tatia, Amara, Kat, they're all alive, living normal lives."

"Until something supernatural comes along to screw everything up because we _all_ know that Petrova girls _have to be_ in the mix for the supernatural somehow." Jeremy condescended. "Why couldn't you Travelers let it be?"

* * *

Charlie stared at the map, baffled. "I think were lost." She told Brady who was driving and Billy who was having a conversation with Marcus and Carlotta via Skype.

"We're not lost." Brady tried to convince her for the hundredth time.

"We just passed the same Subway, three times in a row!" Charlie huffed.

Billy gave the people in the web camera a face that said he was going to pull his hair out if these two didn't stop. "Ooo honey, you're lost." Carlotta spoke up, getting Billy's hint. "Pull over, Mr. de Los Santos and I have something we need to share with you anyway."

Deciding that if they were going to pass by the Subway again it might as well be to pull into the parking lot. Getting out of the car, everyone heaved a sigh of relief that they didn't know they had been holding in. Resting the laptop on the back of the trunk, the kids gathered around. "What is it, you two?" Billy asked as Charlie and Brady inched in to hear.

"So I was on the web some more to see if Mystic Falls has anything suspicious going on and there is!" Marcus searched through a stack of printed out papers from his side. "A whole bunch of unsolved or conveniently covered up murders!"

"But Amara said that she looked up Mystic Falls," Charlie reasoned. "Sure, the death toll is high but other than that it's an eerily quiet town."

Marcus scoffed. "Yeah too quiet, especially for a small town. You know those types, they're smaller than ours, somebody's got to have dirt on somebody."

Brady shrugged. "I guess."

Carlotta held up a finger on the screen. "It gets better."

"I hacked into Mystic Falls county police reports," Marcus explained. "We've got your death toll dating back to it's first big spike on May 23, 2009."

Billy leaned in skeptical. "What's so special about May 23, 2009?"

Marcus showed a picture of a happy couple. "Our first unexplained death victims, Grayson and Miranda Gilbert, died in freak crash from skidding off the bridge and drowning in the local river."

"Gilbert's the name that Amara said her father mentioned." Brady snapped.

"Now I had Marcus here pull up the death report." Carlotta filled them in. The woman had worked as a doctor in a hospital the next town over several years ago. "Nothing unusual, water to the lungs, bruising to the chest and legs from the seatbelt and minor cuts and scrapes from hitting themselves on the dashboard or window of the car. All and all, what a car crash and drowned victim suffers." The teens failed to see where this was going. "There was something unusual on the the toxscreening report though. Traces of large amounts of an herb that one wouldn't normally consume."

"Where they poisoned? I bet they were poisoned. Oh my god, they were poisoning each other...!" Brady became excited.

Carlotta put a stop to it, while simultaneously wondering if she could give the boy an MRI without him freaking out. "No, they were not poisoned, calm down."

"So it wasn't lethal?" Charlie deduced.

Carlotta sighed. "Hardly. The herb is a colorless and tasteless thing so even if they were consuming it without their knowledge, it would be very easy to hide in a drink or food, but no I can't imagine that it could do a person any harm. If anything, it would leave your mouth slightly parched. I believe this type of herb could be found in a field. Most likely an old plantation."

"Like all over Mystic Falls." Brady cut in. Everyone stared at him like he'd grown a second head. "What? When my family went the first time, I noticed a few things. The town is littered with abandoned plantations and Victorian homes. They even have a historical society." Everyone shook their head wondering how the beef could actually have something going on in his brain.

"But that's not even the weirdest part." Marcus went on. "When Grayson and Miranda died they left behind their house, which in later years would burn down without any explanation, to Miranda's sister Jenna Sommers, who also has a _weird unexplained death_. Along with it, Grayson and Miranda left behind their two pride and joy of children." Marcus grabbed a printed paper, still not enjoying what he was seeing on it. "And you'll never believe who one of them looks like." Everyone in the parking lot glanced at one another in question then brought their attention back to Marcus on the screen. "15 year old Jeremy Gilbert _and_ 17 year old _Elena Gilbert_." He turned around the picture, watching the others gasp.

"So Kat's not the only one with a person she shares a face and a name with." Charlie wonders out loud.

Billy takes a guess. "Were there any weird instances involving the Gilbert girl? Anything that authorities couldn't make sense of?"

Carlotta huffed. "Couldn't make sense of? More like didn't want to."

Marcus nodded. "I'm with Carlotta on this one. Elena Gilbert, her brother, their whole group of friends were somehow always present whenever something irrational went down in this little town and yet none of the authorities questioned them."

"Maybe she was close to the cops?" Brady suggested.

Marcus chuckled. "Funny you should mention that, Sheriff Forbes, also deceased though that was because some hard evidence of natural causes, I know, I checked, she had a daughter, Caroline Forbes, and guess who was one of miss Gilbert's bffs?"

"So strange things start happening to the Gilbert children after their parents die, the sheriff's daughter somehow gets entangled in this whole thing, which prompts the sheriff to cover it up, trying to protect Caroline." Billy hypothesizes.

Marcus dings him. "Bingo, Billy boy."

"And no one else questioned this?" Charlie asked, finding it hard to believe.

Marcus digressed. "Actually most of the town that wasn't killed off, in the time this started happening, found that they had been suffering from constant blackouts but blamed it later on the intake of a local herb called vervain, unknowingly being dumped into the water supply system."

Brady was catching on. "Vervain? Carlotta, could that be the herb that the doctors found in Grayson and Miranda Gilbert?"

"Could be. Though I highly doubt that an herb, that didn't cause any internal harm to two all but healthy individuals, could cause blackouts to a whole town."

"So something else bigger was going on in that town," Charlie whispered. "Marcus do you have a list of who the main vervain suppliers were?"

Marcus smirked. "Thought you'd never ask. Like Brady said, Mystic Falls does have a lot of plantations but only few grew vervain and guess which two families had the leading source?" Marcus brought up two more pictures on the screen. One of a young handsome man and the other of a boarding house. "The Lockwoods and the Salvatores."

Charlie seemed lost. "What's so special about them?"

Marcus was all knowing. "Only that Tyler Lockwood happened to be a close friend to Elena and Jeremy Gilbert and had also was known to be quite hot and heavy with the sheriff's daughter at one point."

Billy wondered. "And the Salvatores?"

"No known picture of them but it was mentioned somewhere that the younger one went to Mystic Falls High so I should be able to grab an image from a yearbook database. Anyway, Stefan and Damon Salvatore were both known throughout the community, both were at one point potential suspects for multiple investigations, _that were dropped_ , honestly." Marcus sighed in frustration at the power plays in this town. "Does this city have no respect for authority?" Charlie, Billy, and Brady all rolled their eyes each of them knowing that Marcus' smart mouth was often the reason authority was needed. "Both were alleged to be deeply in love with miss Elena Gilbert."

"But they're not anymore?" Brady asked.

"Damon hasn't been seen for years but the gossip column in past Mystic Falls Weekly say that he never truly got over her. Stefan on the other hand moved on and who with, other than-"

"If you say the sheriff's daughter I'm going to scream at how incestuous these small town relationships are." Charlie threatened.

Marcus laughed with mirth. "Oh ho, I haven't even told you about how the Gilbert girl used to date the quarterback but when they broke up the quarterback's older sister went at it with the Gilbert girl's younger brother which, by the way that older sister was supposed to be going out with Tyler Lockwood. Then there's the little fling Damon Salvatore had with Miss Forbes that caused her to hate his guts. Not to mention, that even when Damon was dating the Gilbert girl there had always been speculation that he had an attraction to her other best friend Bonnie Bennet, who had this on again off again relationship with the Gilbert boy. Oh also-"

"Carlotta?" Charlie deadpanned, wanting her answer to her initial question, instead of listening to this rant.

"It was Caroline Forbes." Carlotta said regrettfully.

"God damn it!" Charlie yelled, stomping her foot, almost hitting Billy's.

Billy moved away. "Hey, easy there!"

"Yeah, I don't get what you have against inner circle dating?" Brady quirked an eyebrow, obviously not comprehending the magnitude of the situation.

"It has nothing to do with this town's love life." Carlotta reassured the boys.

A frustrated Charlie threw her hands up to the sky. "It's that we are literally going to be walking into a town that have bonds so strong and alliances so crossed, we won't know _who_ to try and get answers from. Let alone what we hardly know what the questions are we should be asking."

Marcus sighed. "Well I'd start with the Lockwood guy. It seems he has less to do with the group than even Matt Donovan, when it came to the love circle." Marcus told them before he and Carlotta signed off.

"Alright," Billy began. "Find Tyler Lockwood, ask about vervain, Gilbert kids and Katherine Pierce, figure out when's the next time Tatia goes wolf-man on us, and hopefully make it back home in one piece."

"Yeah," a new voice spoke out. Moving around from the laptop, the three teens saw that they were being circled by a large group of people. "I don't think that's going to happen." The blond man, who must have been their leader, furnished a bludgeoning sword. The group gulped.

* * *

In the gist of going there separate ways, both Tatia and Kat had texted Elena to watch over Amara. Kat because she was wanting dirt on their progression into relationship status. Tatia because she just didn't like the guy. However, Elena wasn't going to be that girl. She didn't want to be the third wheel and certainly didn't want to intrude on Amara and Stiles privacy. That's why, when they got to the library, Elena let them be. Of course, she let them be only one isle over but she was a Petrova, as their Daddy would say _'Natural snoopers and schemers. Or is it the other way around?'_

Sitting down with a wall of books blocking them, Elena began to read on what could be the source of her strange ability to unleash fire upon someone. After the third book and absolutely no luck, Elena decided to pretend to read a book and zero in on Amara's and Drix's conversation.

"Enjoying the scenery, Anson?" Amara smirked after catching Drix staring at her with wonder rather than the book they were sharing.

Drix's smile just widened. "Oh yeah, New Orealns, beautiful place."

"How did you manage to tear yourself away from this place?" She wondered aloud. Without warning Drix seemed a little uncomfortable. "I'm sorry," Amara apologized feeling guilty. "You said earlier that you moved all up and down the east coast and you were the one who got us here. I just figured..." She trailed off as Drix was deep in thought.

Moving slightly, Drix kissed her then smiled. "I lived here for awhile but it was never home for me." Drix explained. "Further up north was better. We had our hard times up there but here, I don't think it was any different." Then he looked off into the distance with a cruel smile. "But my family was."

"What'd they do?" Amara whispered worried for the boy.

Drix turned his handsome, softening gaze to her. "They hurt me." Amara's worry became more evident but Drix quelled it a little by lacing his fingers with hers as he watched them holding hands.

"So even your parents...?" Amara left the question hang, not wanting to think about what mental and physical bruising his family must have done to him.

Drix chuckled but there was no warmth to it. "My mom was the worst. She put me in the situation and by the time she wanted to pull me out of it she was too disgusted by me to give a shit. Dad? He doesn't let up on anyone now. Maybe he never will, who cares. We're all carriers of our own demons." Kissing the top of Amara's hand. As he still held onto it Drix whispered into her skin. "Every time I would work up the courage to get them to stop, they'd do something, like they were trying to make it up to me," He shrugged with his head and pursed his lips. "Or maybe themselves, who knows?" Watching her like she was the greatest thing in life, Amara began to feel hopeful. "One day I'm going to be strong enough to make them see what they've done to me. Make them regret what they've done. Maybe then they'll see that not everything is what it seems. I hope you can be there to see it."

Elena stopped listening, feeling her pocket buzz, she pulled out her cell phone.

 _Tat: Change of plans! Meet us at the Dress-Up Emporium down the street.  
Elena: Be there. Everything ok?_

 _Tat: Yay. And tell moody boy to stay at the hotel!_

 _Elena: He's not so bad._

 _Tat: Is 2!_

 _Kat: Not!_

Elena rolled her eyes, knowing Kat she got tired of peeking over Tatia's shoulder and decided she had to join on her own phone.

 _Tat: Is 2!_

 _Elena: Not! His family BEATS him!_

 _Tat:..._

 _Tat:Well he doesn't have to be a jerk about it!_

 _Elena: He's not to Mara ^_^_

 _Kat: He wants her V! – a message from Brady._

 _Tat: (x_x)_

 _Elena: (o_O) (-_-') Brady's a dumbass._

 _Kat: Don't we know it._

 _Elena: C u 2 in 10?_

 _Tat: C ya 3 !_

 _Kat: Later 3!_

Putting her phone away, Elena got up and walked over to the next isle. Clearing her throat, she watched the blushing two separate from their current make-out session. "Come on, Tatia and Kat want us at the Dress-Up Emporium. Something's come up."

* * *

Getting the finishing touches on, Tatia tapped Amara on th shoulder to let her know that her hair was finished. Having strung it in her head piece but still allowing it to look effordlessly down, Tatia admired her work. Yelling to inside the dressing room, the girls waited. "Kat hurry up! I still have to do your hair!"

Kat huffed. "I can't decide!" She admitted through the changing room door. "The 1400's or the 1800's?"

"14!" All the girls answered back at the same time. Quickly changing and getting out, Kat sat down in the chair for Tatia to get started on her hairstyle. Once she was done, it was at that moment Marcel decided to walk into the parlor looking costume store.

"Ladies, ladies, ladies, don't you look like fine prizes." Marcel bent down kissing the hand of Elena before twirling Amara around to get a good look at her. Amara giggled while Elena smiled. "You two _must_ _be_ the girls that my sight mistakenly took you for your sisters. Elena and Amara." He greeted.

"What are you supposed to be Marcel?" Tatia asked.

"Why I...am a gentleman." Marcel winked at them tacking his hat off his head and tipping it towards them. "Now let me guess." He put his hands on Tatia's shoulders, getting a good look at her. "A _fierce_ Viking woman, with features so contrast, she'd ensnare any man to her traps. Perfect for the protective Tatia." Tatia smiled, indicating that he had hit it on the nose. Moving over to Kat, he grabbed both her hands moving slowly as they waltzed with ease. "A _fair_ maiden," He dipped her then slowly brought her back up and let her go. "With eyes for hooks and a sensuality that defies what one would make her out to be, correct Kat?" Kat smirked, placing her hands on her hips, moving her chin high as if she were trying to impersonate an aristocrat. Sauntering over to Elena, Marcel held out his arm which Elena took as Marcel led her to an imaginary audience. Presenting her like she were winning more than just the fake crown on her head. "A _just_ prom queen, worthy enough to be treated like a princess, with a grace that shows she's not as innocent as she seems." Bowing to Elena, he turned, grabbing a flower from out of his pocket, flaunting it in front of Amara's shining face. "And a _sweet_ Greek Goddess, holding all the love and morality of nature with just the smile on her face." Amara smile widened, taking the flower out of Marcel's hand.

"What about me, Marcel?" Drix interrupted coming out of his dressing room in his Doo-Whop singer white suit costume. Amara may have been entranced by Marcel but now she couldn't take her eyes off her sorta kinda boyfriend, with his black hair slicked back and his little bow tie. "You going to tell me how pretty I am?" Drix smirked, slightly hostile.

Marcel's smile faded into confusion. Something seemed off about this guy, something that Marcel couldn't put his finger on. "Do I _know_ you?"

"I'm the girls' escort." Drix told him, lazing his arm around Amara's shoulders.

"Escort?" Marcel looked to Tatia. "When we discussed this baby-doll, I said nothing about a free ride."

Drix glared at the man. "Isn't the festival open to the public?" The young man countered.

"Well yes, but the girls' meeting needs to go down without a hitch, you have to understand." Marcel tried to reason.

"I go," Drix got dangerously close to the vampire. "Or we find some other way to speak to the Mikaelsons." The girls watched in fascination, waiting to see what would happen.

Marcel chuckled, not in the mood for using some compulsion tonight _'and besides the kids got spunk.'_ "Alright I don't normally do this but my main singer is out of commission at the last moment. You're already dressed for the part, think you can carry a tune?"

Drix smiled. "Wait, really?"

"If the girls want to make an impression then we need to set the mood and to do that would require an actual performance. Now the oldest Mikaelson, he can only deal with so much DJ-ing. But if you really want the girls to be successful, the one you need to impress is the Mikaelson who's calling the shots." Marcel explained to the boy. "His choice in music is a bit old fashioned so try something with a jazzy feel or just nostalgic feeling but if you have to switch it up go for something that everyone will enjoy." Marcel patted Drix on the back, not feeling the least remorse for the kid if he performs something Klaus doesn't like to which his held will probably rot on the ground floor at the end of the night. "Oh, one more thing before we head out." Marcel snapped his fingers to which some men standing in the corner which the girls now just noticed had been there this whole time brought forth eye masks. "It's _that_ kind of party." Marcel grinned giving the teens one each.

Once the girls put on there's and Drix his, Marcel smiled watching as they headed out the door. "The girl's masks, they'll make their voice unrecognizable to the Mikaelson's ears?" He asked his fellow vampire.

"Yes, Marcel, anyone but the Mikaelsons will recognize it. Davina made sure of that."

"Good, come on boys. Let's party."

* * *

 **AN:/ Not going to lie, I had this whole elaborate reveal of Nina Petrova and Jeremy Gilbert's first encounter but then I fell asleep and couldn't remember it when I woke up. Phewie! If I remember it I try to see if it's justifiable to use with another character interaction. We still don't know what's happened to Justin Gilbert and I'm starting to get a little worried myself. Bastian, the loveable little bastard is giving Tony more insight to what's at stake here. Poor Elias had to pass out but will he make it through considering he is the voice of reason in this deranged wolf pack? The Strayfield gang was just about to meet the Mystic Falls gang when, wouldn't you know it, the little dorks run into some trouble. Tatia's still suspicious about Drix _as she should be_ ;) Kat's trying to avoid the inevitable, Elena's trying to seek out what's going on, and Drix and Amara are growing tremendously close. Marcel ever the sly one (BTW I hope I captured Marcel's personality. He's suppose to be charming but there is a fine line between charming and creepy. Let me know if I cross it or need to tone it down.) he knows that the Originals aren't going to be too happy when they see some familiar faces! That's right next chapter is the one we've all been waiting for because we're going to see the Mystic Falls gang AND the Originals! Please, _Please,_ PLEASE, tell me what you think, I'd love to hear back from you even if it's just a: "it's good." for a review.**

 **Translation time:**

 ***"I can spot a trickster when I see one."**

 **Love you all!**


	6. For We Shall Perish With Pride!

Nina tired to pick the lock on the cell door while Jeremy watched with a bored expression on his face. Leaning against the stone wall, watching the woman struggle, Jeremy rolled his eyes not being able to take it anymore. Bending down to the lock, Jeremy put his hand over hers. "A bobby pin? Really?"

Nina scoffed. "I saw it on a TV show once."

Jeremy chuckled a little at her frustration. "On what, Scooby Doo?"

"No!" Nina whined, getting up letting Jeremy handle this. "Buffy." She mumbled sadly.

Jeremy just rolled his eyes then went back to examining the lock. "A lock like this can't be broken with a bobby pin, it's too small an item. The best we can do is wait it out, hope that one of the militia townspeople find one of us useful and get sloppy."

"What about your son?" Nina asked in motherly worry.

Jeremy glared. "He's none of your concern."

Nina countered back. "Well then neither is my daughter."

" _My sister_!" Jeremy growled. Deciding to try and calm down Jeremy went to sit up against the wall still giving Nina some loathing eyes. "This reincarnate experiment, what do you think the Travelers hope to accomplish?"

Nina sighed. "They hope that whatever impending doom that would come their way could be waivered off."

"At the expense of a doppleganger?" Jeremy was honestly curious.

Nina shook her head, trying not to think to hard about it, she droned on about the explanation that had been drilled into her mind since the beginning of her training. "Yes, a Petrova Doppleganger is a key antidote when making or breaking a curse and or ritual that could have lasting effects."

"So, you were just going to raise them to be sacrificial lambs," Jeremy tried to make her see how messed up that was. "With you yourself being one of them." Nina refused to look Jeremy in the eye. It was then that it dawned on the Gilbert man. "You _weren't_ going to be one of them." Jeremy had to chuckle at this knew found info. Standing up, he walked closer to Nina backing her into a corner. "The Travelers needed a Petrova but they weren't going to sacrifice the one they already had, not with new Big Bads showing up right when the old one dies down. _You_ , the one they molded to be their little follower, were too important. So, in comes the reincarnate spell." Jeremy laughed with spite as Nina carefully backed away. "And with every threat that the Travelers knew they couldn't take care of, there was always the backup plan, whispering in the edge of their minds." Jeremy smirked cruelly. "But you never were part of that plan, were you Nina?"

"I-"

"No, you just lead the girls to believe that were leading normal lives, when really you were raising them to be a contingency for a group just as corrupt as the Big Bads they were facing." Jeremy had her up against the wall making her look into his broken eyes. "Wasn't going to effect you any. You'd get out unscathed, go about your normal life, _living_." Backing up, Jeremy turned around in disgust.

"Maybe that's how it started out but that's not how it happened." Nina defended herself. "I never planned to love the girls as much as I did. It just came about." Tears gathering up in Nina's eyes, the woman wouldn't allow them to fall. "I know that what the Travelers had wanted for us was horrible and the only person it would benefit would be them but I signed up anyway. And you know what? I'm glad I did!" Nina furiously tried to wipe away the tears that came rushing down her face as her voice cracked. "I'm glad I got to spend my years raising the most loving and caring human beings on the planet and I'd do anything to make sure that they wouldn't become pawns in a sacrifice!"

Jeremy turned to see Nina resembling Elena when she was at her most broken. Having conflicting emotions running threw him, Jeremy swiftly gathered her up in his arms as she wept into his chest. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." He whispered repeatedly, rubbing her back, feeling like he was being transported to his teen years all over again. "Shh..." he tried to calm her sobs and hiccups.

"Jeremy Gilbert, what if everything goes wrong?" Nina cried. Unfortunately, Nina nor Jeremy realized just how south things were about to turn.

* * *

The girls walked through the lovely lit park with an air of confidence. They were going to get the answers they needed and get out of dodge when they got the chance. Turning towards the girls, when Marcel had broken off to go mingle, Drix told them of his ails. "I don't trust the guy."

Tatia harrumphed. "We don't either but right now he's our way in finding out what happened back home." She told him, hands on her hips.

"Well what's with the masks?" Drix waved over at the rest of the people in the park. "He said it was 'that kind of party' but so far it looks like we're the only ones that have them on." The girls glanced around noticing he was right.

"Maybe it's any easier way of finding us?" Elena suggested. "This is a big crowd and Marcel did say that he was part of the VIP's."

Kat gave her opinion. "And Marcel was wearing one too so there has to be some special reason for it."

"Whatever it is, I think we should establish that he's not the one to make the rules for us." Drix explained. "We've already done everything else he said."

"Okay," Amara thought out loud. "So when the time is right we throw our masks off?" She suggested. "As an act of defiance?" Everyone nodded thinking that a little rebellion couldn't hurt. "Come on, there's a party going on. We look weird just standing around." Then they all broke off.

* * *

"Marcel, I must declare," Elijah mused as he, Klaus, Rebekah, Kol, and Davina, followed through the park. "It is quite spectacular."

Marcel smirked. "Why thank you Elijah. It feels nice finally get a mouth of good words from you."

Elijah opened his mouth to disagree when Klaus cut him off, slapping a hand on his adoptive son's shoulder. "While I must say that it's hard getting any form of good will from my brother, I'd have to agree, Marcel this party is magnificent."

"Yes," Kol smiled, now back in his Original body along with Rebekah, thanks to Davina who also had slowed her aging process. "And I hear you have gifts to present us?" Kol threw a knowing smirk at Davina who was drapped across his arm, her smile equally as mischievous.

Marcel chuckled a little, worriedly glancing at Davina who just winked back. "All in due time, ladies and gentlemen, now why don't we mingle?" Holding his arm out for Rebekah to take, they strutted down from the gazebo that they were residing in to watch the party guests.

"Marcel?" Rebekah asked as Marcel hummed, signaling that he had heard her. "Why are those five wearing the masks made just for the after party?"

Marcel whispered in her ear. "Why they're the gifts, Beks." Rebekah sent him a satisfied smirk, happy that he could provide the proper snacks.

* * *

Dancing in delight, the Petrova girls were playing the part, having the time of their lives, unbeknown that they were being studied. "Now look at that girl there, Elijah." Klaus pointed to the girl wearing the feminine Viking outfit.

Elijah spotted her and stared with wonder but his gaze slowly slipped and caught onto her friend who was dancing around with her as several eager young men lusted after them some feet away. Removing his gaze from the girl in the red maiden dress and focusing once again on the Viking, Elijah acknowledged. "Quite the spirited young thing yes, Niklaus?"

"Quite." Klaus nodded. "That's how I want every guest to arrive." Klaus smirked, taking a drink from his goblet. "Oblivious of the monsters that surround them. Blissful in there youth, naïve to what could potential lay before them."

Elijah smiled. "I hardly think we should use this party as a rouse to expand your hybrid army. There are humans afoot."

Klaus smirked, not being able to take his eyes off the girl in the Viking outfit. "Which is why we have spots opening up in the vampire following, you must know one can never have too many?"

Elijah would have replied had he not seen the red maiden dance-side step a young man who was trying to coax her into being his dance partner. The move seemed almost familiar to Elijah but not, for the boy was too clumsy and couldn't keep up with the girl. Unexpectedly, the girl took off running in a fit of giggles as the young man tried to chase her amongst the crowd. "Niklaus, perhaps it is our best interest to pursue objects greater than power." Elijah rambled wisely, moving his eyes to follow the girl into the crowd.

"Perhaps..." Klaus agreed setting his goblet down with the nearest tray as the bus boy carried it away. Swaggering towards the Viking girl, Klaus put on his most charming personality. Elijah stood still into place before he too sauntered off to find where the maiden had run off to.

* * *

Over by the punch fountain, Elena poured herself a goblet. "Careful," an English voice almost startled her. Turning, Elena saw young man dressed as a baseball player with a smirk on his face. "I heard someone spiked it." He wiggled his eyebrows in knowing.

Elena sighed but her heart rate didn't go down. Something about this guy made Elena uneasy, never the less she put on a brave face. "Thank you," Elena smiled. "Legal drinking age and all." Still she took a sip anyway.

The boy got closer. "You know if there's one thing I hate, it's hypocrites." He smiled at Elena who was getting more uneasy by the second. "Wouldn't you say, Darling?" He turned his head.

Out of the blue a girl, dressed as an angel, appeared on his arm. "I certainly would Kol." the young woman pursed her lips at Elena who put down the goblet on the table. "Then again it _is_ a costume party. We've all got to pretend to be something we're not, once in a while."

"Right..." Elena said slowly. Backing up a little more, she pointed to the crowd of dancing people. "I'm going to go find my sisters. It was _nice_ meeting you." Though Elena thought nothing of the sort as she took off. Kol and Davina gave each other a knowing look before going to find and taunt Rebekah and Marcel.

* * *

Helping Drix talk to the background singers as they were setting up, Amara watched him dismissed them. "And where the bloody hell is Karly Alexandria?!" Amara and Drix turned to see a beautiful blond princess, all huffed up, hands on her hips, next to Marcel.

Marcel cleared his throat. "She was held up for a bit Beks. You might want to ask Kol where they went off to earlier this evening." Rebekah rolled her eyes in annoyance, knowing she was going to have to be the one to compel some forensic cleaners to come on out to the mansion to bleach and mop up the place _'Because Gods know Kol doesn't ever clean up after he's done eating.'_ she thought. Motioning over to the two on the stage Rebekah turned to Marcel. "And who's _this_?"

"This here is Amara. Her three sisters and her are new in town and I thought I'd invite them to the after party to show them some good ol' New Orleans hospitality." Marcel smirked at the blond. She turned looking Amara over.

From Rebekah's point of view the girl didn't look to be her taste but then again Rebekah could hardly make out what she looked like with her sash head dress, some hair and her mask covering the girl's face. Maybe Elijah would like a little something extra to loosen him up. Rebekah vied for the more beefy juices. The blond then turned her gaze on Drix. "And this?" She pointed to him but not bothering to acknowledge the boy.

" _This_ , is Drix Anson." Drix glared at the princess. "Your new entertainment for the night."

Rebekah swung her head over and sneered. "Rift-raft?" She was stunned by Marcel.

"Ah, ah, new blood baby." Marcel said smugly. "To the musical arts of course."

Rebekah rolled her eyes. "Of course. Well then keep setting up." She commanded as she walked off the stage with Marcel. "And _try_ to be tasteful with your musical selection!" the girl yelled.

* * *

Klaus had sent the boys an evil smile before they ran off, letting him have the chance to talk quietly to the Viking girl. She wasn't however, giving the slightest indication that she had noticed him as she kept dancing, avoiding any contact with him, and Klaus was an impatient man. "You know Love, some may call it _rude_ to keep a _king_ waiting." Klaus bit out with snark.

Tatia finally looked at the man in the King costume and gave him a smile but kept dancing. "And some may find it rude to talk about another behind there back." Tatia shrugged nonchalantly. Klaus narrowed his eyes, waiting for her to go on. "I saw you noticing me with your friend by the foot of the gazebo, long before you decided to come and talk to me. I'm young not stupid."

Klaus was intrigued that this sly girl would so blatantly point out his mistake in thinking her a fool. She obviously didn't know who she was speaking with. Clearing his throat, Klaus tried to reign in his control. "And how would you suggest I go about acquiring the identity of this mysterious enchantress Love?" He asked trying to get a good look at her face but could hardly see it with her fur lined hood from the outer cloak, her dark brown almost black hair, and the face mask, obscuring his vision. "Because I can't very well keep referring to her as 'The Viking Girl'."

Tatia let out a small smile at that, still dancing. "I don't play games with kings." She told him with a smirk. "Otherwise I'd never win and I do like to win." Klaus smirked back though his was less playful and more predatory. "I'll give you my name on my own time."

Normally, Klaus would grow tired of this ruse and compel the girl to just give it to him but Klaus found her bravery amusing. Idiotic but amusing. "Alright Love." He told her grabbing her hand, causing her to narrow her eyes in suspicion, twirling her around and letting her go, leaving her outstretched arm to linger in the air before she brought it back to her side. "I'll play your little game but I will tell you this. You may like to win but I _always_ win." Klaus smiled not so warmly before walking off back to the gazebo. Tatia's heart was pounding in her chest, with what she could not answer.

* * *

Kat was sure she had lost the guy who had been chasing her for the past 15 minutes. Turning around and walking backwards, Kat raised her head to see above the crowd on her tiptoes, when she bumped her back against something solid. Turning around swiftly, Kat came about a knight. "Hello." She smiled but the knight didn't offer anything back but a raised eyebrow at the direction she had come from. "Oh that?" She glanced over her shoulder real quick before looking on the man's handsome face again. "He was never my partner to begin with."

Elijah returned her smile bemused. "That young man certainly didn't consider that so."

"Yeah well," She breathed in trying to catch her breath, feeling like she had lost it. "If you can't keep up..." She smirked, trying to get the giant rose crown from falling off her head and readjusting it in her hair, while keeping her mask on.

Elijah felt as though this girl held more wisdom than what Niklaus had given her and her friend for. "And _if_ someone could keep up?"

Kat found it easy to speak with the knight, especially since she couldn't take her eyes off his jawline "It wouldn't matter." She gave him a genuine smile before turning her head to look back at the dancing crowd. Elijah's breath caught in his throat. For a second he could have sworn he saw... "We could run for the next thousand years...But I'll still never let him catch me." She told him with certainty.

"Hey!" A girl from on stage caught the mysterious maiden's attention whom only nodded in return. "Sir knight." She curtsied as if she had been taught to and perfected, before running off to join three other girls and the singer on the stage. Elijah sucked in a breath then headed back to the gazebo.

* * *

As the music from the DJ died down, Drix tapped the old fashioned microphone with his finger to get everyone's attention. Glancing quickly to his left at the Petrova girls, standing in front of their own microphones, Drix couldn't help but inwardly grin. Everything was going to plan.

Drix had spotted the Petrova girls a month earlier when he went searching through the town of Strayfield with ease. He'd tracked their movements, watching them from afar, not revealing himself until he was sure that he had everything he needed to put his plan into action. After years of searching, he had finally come upon Lucifer's Cemetary. He'd been going back and forth between Covington and Strayfield, living in the caverned city and various motels, waiting for the time to be right. Unfortunately, some vampire wench had stumbled upon his place of reign earlier last week. It made no difference, Drix was tired of waiting. Establishing a place of residence and getting a fake ID with a pseudonym as his cover right before the school year started was easy what he didn't count on was Amara. Out of all the Petrova girls she was the most interesting. Drix knew, that for him to survive she would have to die, and while he thought about the many different ways he could kill her traitorous sisters, when he tried imagining her bloodied dead body, his mind went blank. He couldn't go soft now, not when he spent the last thousand years waiting for his moment to extract revenge! Sure, he may have hit a bump in the road when that idiot Brady decided their gang should split up. Personally, Drix wanted to see them all suffer together. He was poetic like that. The other bumps were less of a hassle. He sort of laughed at how Marcel thought he was calling the shots on this whole thing. Stupid vampires. Drix was the only one of his kind and soon he'd be the only one. Period. Nothing was going to stop him. Not the Travelers, not that stupid Disgraced Pack, not The Originals, and certainly not the Petrovas.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Drix announced into the mic. "We've got a special treat for you tonight. Hit it!" he told the band members. _**The girls**_ started singing backup. _Drix_ got started.

" _Your lips are movin'  
Your lips are movin'  
Your lips are movin' and you lie, lie, lie  
Your lips are movin'  
Your lips are movin'  
Your lips are movin' and you lie, lie, lie..."_

Marcel sent Elijah a smile as if to say _'see I didn't mess up.'_ As he started clapping his hands to the beat with the rest of the crowd. Turning to his best friend, Marcel noted Klaus had a face that said he was impressed, something that rarely happened.

" _This hit  
That ice cold  
Michelle Pfeiffer  
That white gold  
This one,_

 _for them hood girl  
Them good girls  
Straight masterpieces  
Stylin', while in  
Living' it up in the city  
Got chucks on with Saint Laurent  
Got kiss my self so pretty."_

Drix motioned for the girls to keep singing Uptown Funk while he changed it up a bit.

" _You can by me diamond earrings and deny-ny-ny, ny-ny-ny, deny-ny  
But I smell her on your collar so goodbye-bye-bye, bye-bye **(and I am bad 'bout that money)**."_

Motioning again, Drix took the lead.

" _Break it down  
Girls hit your hallelujah **(whuoo)**  
Girls hit your hallelujah **(whuoo)**  
Girls hit your hallelujah **(whuoo)**  
'Cause uptown funk gon' give it to you  
'Cause uptown funk gon' give it to you  
'Cause uptown funk gon' give it to you  
Saturday night we in the spot  
Don't believe me just watch!"_

Bringing it all together they both took on the chours letting the girls grab some sections of their own.

" _I know you lie  
'Cause your lips are movin  
Tell me do you think I'm dumb? __**(don't believe me just watch)**_ _  
I might be young but I ain't stupid  
Talking around in circles with your tongue __**(don't believe me just watch)**_ _  
Don't believe me just watch  
Don't believe me just watch  
Don't believe me just watch!"_

Drix made a hand motion while he and the girls danced along to the song with the crowd.

" _Hey, hey, hey, oh!_

 _Stop!  
Wait a minute."_

Rebekah turned to Marcel with a sly smile then planted a kiss on his cheek. "I must say Marcel you've really pulled through with this one."

"Yeah mate," Kol grinned as they talked over the music. "Wherever did you find them?" the younger Original played coy.

Marcel's smile dropped a bit. "Just strolling along town." Sending Kol a serious look, Marcel went on. "Would have gone on without a hitch and Rebekah would have gotten her favorite singer, had you not intervened."

Davina groaned. "Ugh, are you drinking from the entertainers _again_?!" She turned on him with pursed lips.

Kol laughed nervously. "Darling, you're my sweetheart but even _I_ get in the mood for a little bit of singing."

Davina rolled her eyes. Crossing her arms and pouting, she grumbled. "Like I already don't do enough of that for you in bed."

Completely disturbed by his wards acts, even though she was technically an adult, Marcel's eyes went wide. "Ohhhh-kay! How about we _not_ talk about that and-"

Jumping at any opportunity to get under his family's skin, Kol went on. "Darling, if you wanted to be more musically gifted all you had to do was ask and I'd play you like a harp." Kol smirked becoming more daring.

Marcel face could only described as: _'Really? You had to?'_ , Elijah just sighed deeply both glad that he was no longer the bud of Kol's hijinks but embarrassed that this is what their high-class family has come to, Rebekah and Klaus both just smirked. "Well _I_ like them." Rebekah countered.

"Yes," Klaus agreed. "more refreshing and much more talented than that other gig we booked." He told them, ignoring the glare Rebekah sent his way. "Though I can't help but think they are quite familiar..."

"Yeah," Marcel agreed. "Especially the kid." They all nodded but turned their attention back to the music.

" _Hey, hey, hey, oh!_

 _Alright now  
I'm your singer for the night,"_

Drix addressed the audience.

" _And we're gonna take this mash up and bring it down  
Here we go._

 _Uptown funk you up, uptown funk you up,_

 _Your turn!"_

The girls sang along with the crowd. Drix caught the girls' eyes, pointing subtly to the masks they were wearing, they nodded along while singing.

" _ **Uptown funk you up, uptown funk you up.**_

I know you lie **(uptown funk you up)**  
'Cause your lips are movin **(uptown funk you up)**  
Tell me do you think I'm dumb? **(uptown funk you up, uptown funk you up)**  
I might young but I ain't stupid **(uptown funk you up, uptown funk you up)**

Saturday night we in the spot  
Don't believe me just **WATCH!** "

At the hight of his note, Drix and the Petrova girls unveiled their masks, not stopping as what they were doing as they continued singing.

Marcel seemed surprised, Rebekah had a look of fury on her face, Elijah was slackjawed, Kol and Davina looked like kids in a candy store, and Klaus had a face full of murder. "Get them." He declared, grinding his teeth, bringing everyone out of their stupor.

Drix smirked, still singing and letting the girls take the lead on this one.

" _ **I know you lie** (yeah)  
' **Cause your lips are movin'** (your lips are movin')  
 **Tell me do you think I'm dumb?** (don't believe me just watch)  
 **I might be young but I ain't stupid** (I ain't stupid)  
 **Talking around in circle with your tongue**  
(don't believe me just watch!)"_

As much as Drix detested humans and their usefulness, he was happy to say there was enough of them spread out in the crowd, dancing along. Even though he could visibly tell that the hybrid was infuriated, there were still too many people between the gazebo and the stage as well as too many humans for them to toss aside and get through without revealing to the world those with supernatural abilities. Smiling over at Amara like nothing was wrong, he silently laughed at her having the time of her life. Ending the song with a bang, both Drix and the girls sang the last few lyrics together.

" _ **Uptown funk you up,  
Uptown funk you up!  
Uptown funk you up,  
Uptown funk you up!"**_

The crowd roared in applause, still being a bit of an obstacle for Kol, Elijah, and Rebekah who were trying to get through. Taking the mic, Drix motioned for the crowd to quiet down as he looked straight into Klaus' eyes. Seeing this the other Original vampires halted in their efforts to get towards the stage.

"Ladies and gentlemen, you've been a great audience but none of this would have been possible if it weren't for Marcel Gerard," Drix threw his arm out in the direction of where the man stood on the gazebo. "I wanted to personally thank the man who invited us this evening to perform for you." Marcel smiled sheepishly at Klaus, who sent him a low growl. Motioning over to the quadruplets, Drix smiled. "Please give your round of applause to the lovely ladies to my left," The crowed, whooped, catcalled, and clapped with joy. "The fierce Tatia, fair Kat, just Elena, and sweet Amara. These are the Petrova girls!" The crowd roared in happiness at the girls who, Drix smirked, were eating up the attention. Turning his attention back to the Original Hybrid, Drix continued. "Now, nothing, and I mean _nothing_ , would be possible without our esteemed family, the Mikaelsons." Drix smiled, taking the anger on each one of their faces and commiting it in his photogenic memory. "Who, as you all know have done _so much_ for the community." Drix saw from the corner of his eye, the Petrova girls pass along a confused face. "So I want to personally thank them too." He playfully smiled at the ever anger growing Klaus. "I, your performer, Drix – I'm sorry," Drix laughed, running hand over his eyes pretending to be foolish. " _ **Hendrik,**_ want to thank you." Drix laughed for real this time at the look of shock came upon all their faces once again. "So," Hendrick smirked then snapped his fingers. A bunch of shadowy, dark figures in armour and black hoods, appeared all around the park, causing people to shreak in panick. The figures unsheathed their swords all at once. And the chaos began. **"** _ **Thank you."**_

* * *

"You can't keep us here forever!" Charlie yelled with her and the other boys tied up to a tree.

The big intimidating guy stepped forward and sighed. "Listen pumpkin, my name's Lance, that's Macey, that guy's Danjou, the twins Petey and Skeet, and the brooding guy over there cleaning the pointy staff is Louis and his group." The man Louis looked up through his eye lids, making Billy suspect that him and his group are the ones they should really look out for. "We're not trying to hurt you, we just want to know what you want with Tyler Lockwood?"

Brady, mustering up his biggest Marcus persona, scoffed. "Wouldn't you like to know!"

Louis sighed, stopping with the cleaning of his spear and in a deadly calm voice, began to speak. "I'm tired of this. Your methods are getting us nowhere." He turned to youngest kid there, who didn't look to be more than 14. "Jeremiah."

The quiet boy seemed uncomfortable being called out but went up to Charlie with an apologetic face. "I'm sorry." He whispered before punching her in the stomach. Charlie would have doubled over in pain, had the ropes not been so strong and strung so that they couldn't move an inch. For now, Charlie settled with squinting her eyes, hard, cringing and hanging her head as low as it would allow her as she let out a gasp in pain.

"Charlie!" Brady and Billy yelped watching the normally tough girl show hurt. Billy whipped his head around. "You can't do this to us!"

"Yeah!" Brady screamed out. "Sooner or later the girls and Drix Anson are going to realize we're not where we said we'd be!" That seemed to get Louis' attention.

Dropping the spear, he marched over to to Brady and held his face scarily close to his own, so that they could look one another in the eye. "Drix _**what?!**_ " Louis growled.

Brady whimpered and gulped. "Dr – Drix Anson."

Louis didn't respond, letting go of the boy's face, he turned around. "Knock 'em out!" Louis yelled. "Someone's impersonating my family's name, _and I want to know who._ "

* * *

Tony applied more herbs and concoctions to the wound while Elias was still knocked out. Tony eyed Bastian as the young man watched his movements closely. They had come to an impasse with Bastian's reveal of info but Tony was still skeptical of the boy. Trying to find common ground again, Tony spoke. "Bastian don't you ever get tired of it?" The blond boy raised an eyebrow in question. "The misery and death? It's got to take a toll on your mind. Shouldn't you be living your life as a normal teen? Making stupid decisions, chasing girls, rediscovering your childhood through your favorite Disney movie." Tony pointed out.

"When I come from, that was all there was in life." Bastian stared off into the distance, thinking about times that once were. "Misery and death."

Tony found that hard to believe. "Not an ounce of happiness?"

Bastian's thoughts were put on halt as Elias stirred a bit from his slumber but quickly faded back out. Looking back up into Tony's eyes with his own hardened expression Bastian told Tony the sad truth. "No. There wasn't." Tony tried to pull his gaze away from Bastian's cruel but sorry fate. "But there were times." Bastian admitted. "Times when we tricked ourselves into believing it."

"What were they like?" Tony asked knowing that they weren't talking about the boy's happiness anymore but his family instead, or perhaps those were more closely related than the young man led anyone else to believe.

"Louis, I'm told was always cast aside. Father was sure that if he couldn't have the son that lived up to his expectations, he wasn't going to settle for the next best thing. Push his next one to the point of breaking. Create his own." Bastian explained, grabbing another peach from his knapsack and tossing it to Tony. "Louis always had it hard. Glorified and praised by everyone except the person he wanted it from the most. Father never gave a damn about how amazing an asset Louis was to the pack or how people looked to him when Father couldn't be bothered. Louis was second best, constantly in the shadow of a person we were forbade to come in contact with. Now if the chance presented itself, I'd make sure _he'd_ be the one to suffer, and I'm not just talking physically." Bastian threatened as Tony shivered at how serious the young killer's voice was.

"Elias?" Tony quirked, curious on how the man calm on the ground, could possibly be a deadly animal. Out of all of Bastian's family, Tony noted that Elias appeared to be the most vulnerable looking, which was saying something about his younger brother sitting before Tony. Elias may not have been on par in terms of ferosity with his brothers but he was certainly more powerful than any other werewolves Tony had encountered. _'Elias, the one with the most diplomatic resources'_ the other Travelers had spoken. Apparently, Elias always seemed to have a way with words. Keeping his most violent family members from _going_ _on_ _a rampage_ had to be a skill. That didn't say that Elias never went stir crazy himself.

"Always the dealer, never the angel." Bastian stated. "Elias can convince any helpless screaming nitwit that they want to be killed, strung up like a prize, before making them beg for him to end their suffering." Bastian ate his peach along with Tony. "Fickle one he is. That girl, Meg? She won't last long. When you Travelers resurrected us and brought her back too, Elias' interests were already starting to wane. My brother likes a challenge, something that can easily spit back whatever he can dish out. I'm surprised he's let her live for as long as he has, of course with our pack already out of balance, we can use all the pawns we can get." Bastian shrugged. "But in terms of Elias, he's never been treated like Louis or I, he just was. Maybe it was a fluke on my father's part, but I don't think he intended to have anymore children with Shayla after Louis but the man had needs. At that time, the woman who birthed me wasn't very well going to let him touch her again so soon."

Tony nodded, understanding the severity of the situation for that time period. "You had a sister, didn't you?"

Bastian tried to pass it off as non-nonchalant but Tony knew that a bond between siblings could hardly be broken. "Mariah, pretty, innocent, stupid." He listed off with considerable ease. "She was a sneaky little thing. Always running around trying to be one of the boys. Shayla tried to murder her in the womb when she realized my father would never hold eyes for her as he does for the witch wench. No matter, the bitch failed and Mariah got away with her wimp of a mate before the rest of us were axed off." Bastian smirked. "She kept our line going and died out years ago from natural causes, or so I've heard. Personally, had I had my way, I would have requested you Travelers bring her back from the dead so I could slice her and her mate up myself. Running away from our family like a bunch of fools. She doesn't deserve to be linked to us in history."

Tony tried not to think of what Bastian was capable of. "And you Bastian? What's your story?"

Bastian's cruel smile resonated on his face. "I'm Bastian the Bastard. The one who knew which side he should choose and what loyalties he should lie with, not that that birth woman ever gave me much of a chance." He told him face turning sour. "Several years before becoming pregnant with her youngest spawn, my father and her held another indisgression, resulting in my birth. Disgusted with falling victim to her own cardinal sin, again, she sought out a way to get rid of me. A simple spell hid her appearance from her own family and she would have drowned me when I came into this world, had my father convinced her otherwise." Bastian crushed the pit of the peach between his thumb and pointer finger without his knowledge, making Tony uneasy. "She named me because really, what's more branding than letting your child know that he wasn't wanted? My father raised me, glad to have an outcome of something he yearned for. He then proceeded to train me to defend myself with my brothers. Father saw the wheels turning in the adulteress's husband's eyes, he knew the day would come. For me and my brothers though it wasn't just about defence, it was always about power. We _needed_ to be more powerful. And we did." Bastian smirked. "More powerful than any wolf pack, more powerful than Shayla, Mikael, Esther, even my father, Ansel himself." The child killer smiled twistedly."The Anson pack is going to be the most powerful beings on the planet." Bastian promised. "More powerful than the Originals and my brother Klaus too."

* * *

 **AN:/ Stuffs about to go down! Haha, seriously though, this isn't even the climatic point XD ! Anyway to anyone who hates music in stories I'm sorry but it had to be done. It is essential to Drix/Hendrik's character and past so it's not pointless filler. Also who saw that coming with the reveal of Drix to be Hendrik Mikaelson _and_ The Anson family being related to Klaus (and Bastian being a _direct_ sibling to the mighty hybrid). Oh yeah, I went there! That will be explained further as well but what you do need to know is that the North East Atlantic werewolf pack and Cary are involved. Jeremy is finding it hard to stay so impassive towards someone who resembles his sister while Nina for once in her life feels completely helpless. Still no word from Justin Gilbert but don't worry he'll make an appearance soon enough. I know I promised both the Mystic Falls gang and the Originals in this chapter but it didn't seem plausible to smash it all into one so they'll be making their appearance next chapter or the one after this I promised. Charlie, Brady, and Billy are now being held captive by Louis and Danjou's packs so who knows how that will play out. I wonder how Marcus will feign with being the only one of his group still at home. Probably going to make him crack under pressure. Here's something to wrap your head around though: If Drix has control of the Devil's army and the fountain of youth is unguarded, is it safe to say the Petrova's past loves will also be coming into the picture soon? Whose side are they on?**

 ***BTW the song mashup was inspired by Sam Tsui cover found on YouTube (originally performed separately, Uptown Funk by Bruno Mars and Mark Robinson and Lips Are Movin' by Meghan Trainor). If you get the chance you should check it out :)**

 **Another thing, I know I'm doing all I can to make this story likeable but I want to know what you think of it so far. PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW when you can ;) it would be greatly appreciated. Until next time! Thanks!**


	7. And Others Shall Die In Our Name

When Justin Gilbert stirs from his sleep, all he can see are dead bodies. Something that he's seen his whole life never has scared him before. Justin is _disturbed_ by the fact that more bodies keep showing up, with ever blink he takes. First, there were a couple dozen or so, now they're multiplying as he rests on the stone ground of his cell. But dead bodies don't scare him. What _does_ scare him? When his mother's body shows up smiling like she's won the lottery.

Justin only ever has seen his mother in times of great disparity. And right now, with more phantoms that flood in, out, and around his cell, all looking to him for guidance? He's not liking the odds of the situation Justin put him and his father in.

"Mom?" Justin rasps out. His mother nods vigorously with a large grin. Recalling the details his father told him, Chelsea Gilbert had led his dad and some other hunters to investigate a strange occurrence that was happening just outside of their hometown of Santa Fe. When they got there, they were jumped. He's not sure what happened and his father doesn't seem too certain either but Justin doesn't question and his dad doesn't divulge. Chelsea Gilbert died of getting the air sucked out of her lungs. As a result her apparition never comes to him with a voice, only with clues. Justin loves what time she does manage to pop in (even if it is at the brink of impending doom) however, it can be very much a hassle that she can't just tell him what he has to do, instead of leaving him hints, and it's not like the ominous other ghosts are much help. Most of them don't even realize they're dead until Justin explains it to them. Remorsefully, with this staggering group, Justin has a sneaking suspicion that's not the case.

Slowly getting to his feet, Justin feels the sore of his muscles and the tenseness of his body. Inwardly, Justin groans waiting for the day for puberty to hit him like a truck like his dad when he was in high school so that he doesn't feel so scrawny and bruises much less because he _knows_ that they are going to be bruises, from the way those guys with guns knocked him out. Glancing back and forth between the gloomy 'death is upon you' ghosts and his mother, the ever smiling optimist ghost, he rubs his back. Sighing as he cracks his neck, Justin stares at them as they whisper all at once harshly. "Okay, I know what I have to do."

* * *

Stefan stares at the ceiling, having never went to sleep the night before. Feeling Caroline move from her slumber she positions herself so that she's laying lazily atop of him.

"What are you brooding about?" The blond girl asks voice light and airy from sleep as she smiles and places her chin on his chest waiting for a reply.

Stefan doesn't move from his position for a beat but nevertheless reciprocates the sentiment with a kiss to her forehead, pulling her closer. "What was the last thing you remember from Friday?"

Caroline hummed propping her arm up to rest her head. "And _why_ does this bother you so much Mr. Salvatore?"

"It's just I'm remembering every thing we did this week," He smiled at her moving his fingertips in a dance up her spine. "Which by the way is a whole lot of nothing. But for some reason my mind is drawing a blank on Friday."

Caroline shrugged but she was a little worried. Friday they actually didn't stay in bed and have fun in fact they didn't even see one another Friday save for when they came back to her house for the night. She had know idea what he did and now that she thought about it she couldn't remember much either. Caroline remembers having to run into town for... _something_ , but of what and when after it all comes up with nothing. "I don't know. Maybe we should contact someone?" Caroline questioned.

Stefan was silent again but stopped hugging her close. "Nah, probably nothing. The town's been quite for years." He shared a smile with her as he brushed back a piece of her hair. "What could possibly make us jump to the end of the world now?"

* * *

Elena groaned, feeling the earth spin off its axis as she tried to make sense of what was happening. Holding her head, trying to gather her wits, the young girl hissed in frustration as the throbbing sharp pain in her head that pounded in her ears made everything feel like death. And, like a slap in the face, it all came rushing back to her.

A clap, a boom, screams echoing throughout the party. Tatia had grabbed hold of her and the other two, trying to get them off the stage but one second Drix was watching them stumble with a smile and the next he standing angrily in front of them with a face so dark, Elena wondered how she hadn't noticed before hand. He would have...well Elena's not really sure what his intentions were but then he disappeared. Holding onto each other as tightly as their grips could allow, they ran through the party dodging every shadowy, yet familiar, figure that was ripping people to shreds. At least, Elena _thought_ they were people, until a girl ran towards one of them with blue veins admitting from the eyes to her cheeks, eyes black as night, and fangs protruding. The girl had tested out what would be the outcome of ripping her hand into the shadowy figures body. Elena didn't see the rest because they started running again but she was sure that she'd seen a shocked scared look on the girl's face before the masked monster sliced her throat. Chaos was all around them. People who had looked out of place, seemingly too tough to be at such an event, were letting out blood curling screams for mercy as their bodies were turned into carcasses.

It occurred to Elena, that the beings weren't touching them but perhaps that was all Kat's doing, since she was almost dragging them to get out of there fast, with only Tatia kind of mildly keeping up. Elena's sure they would have made it too, when suddenly the brown haired girl from earlier in the evening stepped in front of them out reaching her hand with a fearful face.

"No!" The girl had yelled and that's when everything blacked out for Elena. Finding the spinning to start slowing down, Elena took in her surroundings. She was in a big house of some sort but one she'd never recognize. Getting to her knees, Elena gasped when she saw her sisters knocked out around her. Crawling as quickly as her lessening vertigo would permit, Elena dragged herself towards Kat who was the closest on the floor. Whimpering just a bit in sympathy at Kat's sprained swollen ankle (How the girl managed to drag the four of them as far as she did without complaint Elena will never know...or hear the end of it), Elena couldn't help but think that this whole thing was stupid. Starting to cry, Elena let small tears rush down her face.

"She's not dead, Elena." An English voice cut through her pity, causing her to turn to the man she'd seen Kat talking to, appear in the room, except now instead of donning a knight costume he was in a presentable suit. "Miraculously, none of them are with the exception of a few minor injuries but no, none of them are dead."

Suddenly the man that Drix had pointed out, along with the rest of the people with him at the party, came in growling. "Not yet anyway." Kol laughed, watching as the blond man gripped her arm with such a vice that she felt like he were breaking it as he brought Elena to her feet.

"Have I not been _fair_ to you, Elena?" The intimidating man whispered, holding her so that she couldn't look away from his threatening eyes that held so much cruelty. Not knowing whether she was to respond or not, Elena's face contorted in fear. "Have I not allowed you to live out your life back home, _not once stepping foot in that place after the death of Katerina_?!" The man's voice became noticeably more demanding for answers but Elena just whimpered. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the man in the suit's stance tense more than it had been earlier. " _ **Look at me!**_ " The man told her, prompting Elena to do just that, wishing she could be anywhere else but here with tears falling heavily down her face. " _Was I not_ _ **merciful**_ _in allowing myself to put distance to someone who's crossed me with every chance she's gotten!?"_

"I don – I don't _know_!" Elena sobbed as he turned her around in his arms, clutching her skull with not enough pressure to crush it but just enough to make her feel pain, positioning her line of sight at her sisters on the floor.

" _Then tell me, Elena Gilbert,_ " The man rumbled into her ear with vehemence. " _Do you find this game worth it?"_ He harshly told her, clenching her waist with such strength, Elena was sure Tatia had met her match in arm wrestling. " _Because it certainly will be for_ _ **me**_ _when I sentence you to a thousand years of torture for your obstinacy and silly little charade!"_

He promised, hold becoming increasingly crushing. "NO!" Elena wailed in pain and suddenly all the lights in the house burst with sparks and shattered. The man let go of her quickly while Kol and his crazy girlfriend grabbed her falling form by the arm as she sobbed defeated.

"Gilbert?" A groggy voice sounded from the floor. Elena lifted her head up to find everyone in the room staring at one of her sisters as she started awakening. Elena squirmed and kicked to try and break free from the young man and woman's grasp but they ultimately let her go after getting a wave from the angry blond girl in the corner.

"Tat! Tati – Tatia, can you hear me?!" Elena urgently scrambled to her sister's sprawled out form on the floor.

"Elena?" Tatia answered back, slowly going through the motions Elena herself had previously gone through. "Where are we? Why'd they call you Gilbert? Are Kat and Amara alright?" The older twin asked feeling like she needed to stretch out.

Elena was at a loss for words. "I don't know." She aswered to the first two questions. "Kat sprained her ankle and Amara has cuts on her arms." Elena glanced over at the anxious crowd of people who were watching them closely. Leaning in, Elena whispered as quietly as she could possibly muster. "Tatia, I think we're in some serious trouble."

* * *

Elias had woken from his slumber still with pain. Taking in his situation, he watched as Bastian perked up from his position on the left and a familiar Traveler man warily observe him on the right. Glancing down at his wound, Elias could see that it had not gone away and though the pain lessoned neither had the gaping wound on his body.

Swiveling his head, Elias tested the man. "The one competent Traveler they call upon to fix me and they choose the one who brought me down with his single secret spell." Elias studied the pale look that ghosted upon Antony Barthelow's face with a passive expression of his own.

He felt Bastian's smug smirk without even turning to see his younger brother. "Didn't you hear brother? He's an _ex_ -Traveler."

Elias sighed. He'd kept up with what was important he just didn't want that detail to be true. "Why are you here, Barthelow?"

"Honestly?" Tony chuckled in mirth. "I'm unsure of that myself." The man glanced at the werewolf's wound in curiosity. "Elias, what _really_ attacked you?"

Elias sat up, grabbing the shirt that Bastian had taken out of his knapsack, and got to his feet. The young man was tired of feeling useless. "He tell you about the Devil's Army?" Elias jutted his head towards his baby brother while putting on the shirt. Tony nodded, getting the feeling that this whole Devil's Army was something bigger than just the Fountain of Youth and the Petrova Burdens. It was strong enough to take down a portion of Louis' pack. Elias turned to Bastian. "Do you remember the Tarkenmoksks?" Bastian didn't need to say anything, knowing that this had purpose. "You were probably too young, but the Tarkenmoksks were a group of prisoner settlers who tried to invade our lands." Elias explained, settling on Tony's inquisitive face for a reason. "Having grown prosperous but still very territorial of our borders, with the village that the Original swine brought with them, our leaders were skeptical about allowing other settlers into the New World." Elias said, leading the way out of the tent, grabbing his weapon, barely showing any indication of how much pain he was in. "Previous pack Alphas had felt threatened by the prospect of not only allowing more settlers, but a prisoner settlement at that, would permit the non-werewolf faction to grow too heavily in numbers, stage a coup d'etat, and eventually drive us out of _our_ lands."

Tony was genuinely curious. "What happened?"

"They were defeated." Elias answered as they hiked through the woods. "By my father, uncle, their packs, and my father's sub-pack." Elias turned to inform Bastian in the eye. "That was Louis and I's first great victory. We were around what people covey as 8 and 9 year olds." Bastian nodded before Elias took the lead again in walking them through the dense forest. "It was not without its bouts though. You see, the Tarkenmoksks were the first known group in history to use the art form of bait and distraction to win a battle."

Bastian taunted with pride. "And yet, they're forever forgotten."

Elias held a smug face. "Only because history doesn't want to remember such cowardice to tell to its generations to come." Swinging his sword in front of him, Elias tested the range of power at which he could move his weapon without exposing his injury to his imaginary enemies. "You are correct Bastian, forgotten they were. What had happened was that the Tarkenmoksks had bribed a dishonorable warrior of ours with promises of riches had he come back to our village with false numbers of our opposition. The warrior did." Tony quickly turned his head to Bastian who had snorted in a mixture of disgust and amusement. "Going into battle at the time had to be discreet. We could not allow the force to become knowledgeable of how many families we held within our sanction, nor could we let on to the neighboring village of our mission, in fear that they might send warriors out to ally with the Tarkenmoksks. Our elders sent only a group of small packs, thinking we'd be met with small numbers. When they didn't return as soon as that evening as we predicted, we feared the worst. Going into a state of panic, a watcher warned us of a great Tarkenmoksks' army heading our way. Seizing the moment, Father grabbed us and took the battle to them. We were fueled with rage for our fallen warriors and killed them where they stood. It was over before the evening had turned to night." Tony was wondering what the point of this history lesson was and asked the older brother so. "My point Antony, is that whatever had attacked myself and the pack did so in spades. If I'm going to have any part in protecting the Petrova Dopplegangers then I would rather do so with success."

"So what _are_ you thinking, Elias?" As they made it to the rest of the pack.

"We take the fight to them." Elias said as if it was the most obvious thing as he and Bastian went to stand by their brother Louis.

It was then that Tony noted three very young _very_ familiar faces that were on their knees with their hands tied behind their backs. "Charlie, Brady, Billy Straess?!"

Never before had the teens, that constantly were teasing him for being a geek, had been so happy to see him. "Mr. Barthelow!"

* * *

"I'm getting impatient." One of the three figures in the room huffed with anger.

"What's it the youth say these days?" Another figure turned to another in regards to the first. "What a shocker?"

"This isn't a laughing matter, Orion!" The man loomed.

" _Of course not,_ Hemming." Orion chuckled. "But then again, we are _here_." Orion jestered to the vacant Barthelow - Petrova household. "Why rush things, am I correct Kem?"

The other man jeered at the two quietly. Pointing to some stairs, he motioned them to walk up, only to come face to face with a brick wall. "Now, why build a flight of stairs to nowhere?" Kem smirked at his companions who were eager to get started. "The Pure Intentions spell. How cute. It seems Antony Barthelow's magic has grown more tightly contracted from our last encounter." Kem told Hemming and Orion.

"Taught him everything he knows." Orion wiped away a mocking tear.

Hemming's cruel eyes grew with his grin. "But not everything _we know._ "

Orion pushed past Kem and cracked his fingers in front of the brick wall. "I could give two shits about that little bastard. I just want our key to the Locator spell."

"And from then," Hemming went on. "The Magik from the Fountain of Youth."

"And _then_ ," Kem's eyes glinted with hatred. "Our revenge for the Petrova Line."

Hemming broke down the wall.

* * *

Colin and Sophie sat as still as they could with their vervain laced bindings, holding them to their respective chairs.

"You know just once, I would love it if _any_ of our adventures didn't result in us getting captured or killed or beaten..." Sophie rolled her eyes at her husbands excessive ramblings. "Why can't we ever just go somewhere nice? Like Rio or Hawaii again?"

"You've all but banned us from Rio de Janeiro, when you went on a blood binge and compelled most of the locals that you were the second coming." Sophie said exasperatedly.

Colin moped. " _My_ _God_ , will you _never_ let me live that down?"

Ignoring him, Sophie kept going. "And I refuse to book us another holiday in Hawaii because the last time we were there you ran into your mate, Kol Mikaelson, and the both of you left me and Rebekah alone for the whole rest of the our stay there!"

Colin was silent with guilt. "I didn't know you were so against Kol and I's friendship."

"Three bloody days alone with Rebekah Mikaelson!" Sophie yelled, astonished by her husband's stupidity. "I can't fathom how her own family can stand that woman for more than a millennium, much less three days! For once, I side with the Hybrid in keeping his daggers close at hand." Sophie ranted for a bit then inhaled a big gulp of air and started counting backwards from one hundred.

Colin would have shrugged his head. He honestly had never met any of Kol's relatives and with good reason. "Do you think I did this?" He whispered with an unsettling feeling in his stomach.

"...73, 72," Sophie halted her counting. Craning her head over her shoulder, Sophie tried to give Colin a reassuring smile. "No my dear, your ironic friendship with Kol Mikaelson did not get us captured." She sighed knowing the cold hard truth of it all. "But it may get Nina and ourselves killed for good this time."

* * *

Kat often prided herself in getting a full night of beauty sleep. If sleep was not the activity taking place between the hours of 11:30 pm - 7:30 am, then she better god damn well be getting some. Otherwise, don't bother her. Period. Don't try to wake her, it will be your demise. Don't bother trying to remove the sheets, she _will_ attempt to strangle you with them. Don't even try the whole, dumping ice cold bucket water on her head because then you'll find your favorite shampoo and conditioner will be swapped out and mixed with blond hair dye, as her father found out the hard way.

More than anything now, Kat would pay the closest person in the vacinity a million dollars to stir her from this nightmare that replays in her brain. It wasn't a dream really, more of a memory, that refused to be stored away in the darkest and deepest corners of her psych. It always starts the same, because really how much more daunting is karma than to throw back in her face the pain she caused to her own flesh and blood. Kat is nine and is being led by her Daddy to a small house, a drive away from their own. What built up to this seemingly innocent event? She can't remember, all that she knows is that she'd blacked out and when she awoke her father was struggling to get the large pair of scissors from Kat's hand as her Momma held a cowering, whimpering Elena in the corner trying to soothe her. Now here Kat was, getting out of the car holding onto her Daddy's arm with a vice as they walked up to the yellow little house door.

Daddy rings the door bell once. Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, he holds his head in his hand and sighs. Bending down so that he can look Kat square in the eyes, he holds his daughter by the shoulders. She can feel him shaking, she sees the fear in her Daddy's eyes. Kat doesn't have an false ideas about bravery. Her Daddy is the man who was brave enough to marry the bravest woman in the world. He's known to be peculiar and strange with a hint of weird but he is, without a doubt, the bravest person in Ekaterina Iskar Petrova's world.

"Kit-Kat, look at me." He whispers the nickname he reserves especially for her, as the girl tried to avoid his gaze. Kat moves her eyes to meet his. " _ **I love you**_ , Kit-Kat." He tells her with as much conviction as he can muster up, with out his voice braking. Kat doesn't know who he's trying to convince, himself or her? "Your Momma, I, your sisters, Amara, Tatia, and...Elena. _We all_ _ **love**_ _you._ " His eyes are wide and, not for the first time in her life, Kat wonders why she looks nothing like her loving father and every bit like her mother. "But we don't know what to do anymore, baby." He sighs and presses a slow loving kiss to his daughter's forehead. Pulling away, he engulfs her small frame into a crushing hug but Kat doesn't return it feeling stoic as ever. She has a dreading sense that she's being offered up for some unspeakable things. "I'll be right outside but once you enter I _can't_ go in." He sniffles into the hair by her ear, making her face damp. The door opens to an older woman whom Kat dreads looks like someone she should recognize or at least have a notion of since the woman is emitting so much hate at Kat. "Lucy." Kat's Daddy nods at the strange woman who is glaring down in Kat's direction. The small girl hides behind her father's pant leg, peeking her head out to the side to watch Lucy's reaction.

"Tony." She greets back then moves to the side, widening the entryway to the inside of her house. "Come in, Katherine," The woman says as she walks further into the house. The girl known to have told off teachers and run her mouth to the most annoying of boys, is in a second reduced to feeling helpless and fearful not even bothering to bite back that her name is most certainly _not_ Katherine! "There is much to unwind."

Kat takes a step into the house and sends her father one more glance. And then closes the red door.

She wakes with a gasp, trying to catch her breath from what kind of pain and tourture that would have happened next in her nightmare, had she not woken up. Eyes frantically moving from one spot to another, Kat tries to calm herself from the panic attack that has crept up on her. Normally, she settles on the face of Amara, the little angel of a twin, but it's not working and being in a place she's never recognized doesn't sit well with her hyperventilating. Finally focusing on someone whose face eases her panic, Kat gazes upon the handsome stranger. As the thudding beat of her own heart dies down in her ears and her sisters send worried some but calming words try and speak with her on all sides, Kat is drawn into the man who holds a somber hurt in his eyes. It's the knight from the party. Instead of downing the gallant and shining armor that defines his honor, he wears a strapping and pristine suit, prim and proper with edge in his stiffness.

Trailing her eyes to her once sprained ankle, Kat is curious how it could have healed to its height of perfection in an impossibly short amount of time.

"Kat!" Tatia yells, now fully grabbing the girl's attention.

"What?!" Kat snaps back with just as much bite as she would have for an annoying ex of hers or Marcus.

Elena rolls her eyes. "She's fine."

Amara, ever the timid one, scoots closer. "Kat, I think there's something you want to hear."

* * *

Louis Anson was titled as many things. The Disgraced Leader, Commander of Wolves, Son of Ansel, Brother of the Hybrid, Conqueror, Victor, Disappointment, Second Best, all of these were what Louis could answer to. He _**refused**_ to answer to his birth name. It was a constant reminder from his father that Louis couldn't ever be what Ansel wanted. Louis was born with no official documents to state that this was the name given to him, as the 21st century seemed so adapt to doing with every newborn child. And when he does meet his demise, (Louis feels a swell of ignorant pride in his youngest brother, Bastian's state of mind that they are "immortal beings" who were fit to be even greater Gods than the Mikaelson family could ever wish to achieve but Louis has no false pretense. Louis is aware that even Gods get cast down from their pedestals by the most unaware of heroes.) Louis will not be written down as the name he titled himself with but the name he shares with a monster, almost as dangerous as he.

Nikalos, son of Ansel.

Louis Anson.

Fate was cruel. Irony was everywhere. Karma was a bitch. He was aware that rarely did those choose to call his half brother by the first half of his name but Louis has memories of a little blond girl only ever calling him by such, so it hits too close to home. Going by Nik had been out of the question. Kal had been another option. Though pulled from far back as before biblical times, Louis recalled another son birthed to Mikael this one with a namesake similar to the man's own, so Kal was of little option as well.

Mikol, or Kol as he would forever go by, was always the Loki of the family. Back when they were present in their own time, the elders would always talk to Louis about a contingency plan. They knew even when father couldn't be bothered.

 _"We don't instigate nor challenge! We defend, wait for the first move! They have their boundaries and we have ours. Until then they are of no threat to us!"_ Father was a coward blinded by love.

The elders saw that and gave Louis their two cents worth instead. The plan was simple: Mikael is the serpent, cut off the head. It bothered Louis, to an extent, that the elders always mentioned to kill Kol first. When questioned, they would always say that while the others were sure warriors, Kol was erratic and had a glint in his eye full for power. In many ways, Louis could always see how father would disgustingly compare his own little brother to that wild card. Both were enomorously unstable and both were sadists in their own right, yet Bastian was held more in control. Bastian was sickeningly more like Klaus than Louis wishes to admit, but that made no difference. Kol was a problem. One that should have been put to death for good, long before the time that was temporarily brought but now Kol roams the earth again. He'd go out first, if Louis were to bring an attack down now. Then Klaus. Elijah. Rebekah. They'd all burn in hell.

Louis had let the kids go. It wasn't that he was being merciful. Anyone who had met him and had lived to tell the tale, (surprisingly there were such beings) would recantor that he was anything but. Which was why he let them go. Louis had tired of them and found that they would serve another purpose along with the Traveler. They were to stay with that stupid pack associated with the Travelers and Louis, Elias, Bastian and himself were going to track down this Drix _Anson_ and slaughter him where he stood. The last place that one of those kids pitifully told him was New Orleans.

Louis chuckled when they arrived just outside the Mikaelson manor at dusk. "Time for a family reunion."

* * *

Drix sat on the cobblestone steps of a death filled church in Texas. The catholic church was littered with bodies, the Devil's Army standing obediently on either side of the pews, and Drix was twirling a dagger.

"Who holds church on a day that isn't Sunday?" Drix laughed to the nearest solider to his left, knowing he wouldn't get an actual answer. "Amara, Amara, Amara," Drix spoke with his tounge laced with fondness. "Why'd you have to be one of my targets, Amara?" He smirked then his eyes went black. He watched as the Petrova girls screamed back and forth with his family in an effort to keep their lives. He saw as the Anson children circle the manor like the Disgraced pack that they were. Drix was enjoying this. Reverting his orbs back to their natural state, he smirked. "I love our family." Drix snapped his fingertips and what happened next could only be the work of a Daemon.

* * *

"I'll tell you one last time, I don't know who this Gilbert girl is!" Elena yelled from across the room.

"Well, let me so eloquently remind you!" Klaus barged back, trying to intimidate her but Tatia stepped in between them before he could get the chance.

"You better back up!" Tatia let out with a growl.

"Or what?" Klause laughed manically. "The last I checked you're a ruse. Elijah himself admitted to killing the _real_ Tatia," Elijah was not capable of flinching in the face of a potential enemy but he did stiffen. "The knowledge of another Doppleganger escapes me," Klaus raises his arm outward to Amara. "Though I'm sure the Mystic Falls gang has uncovered some means of making such a ludicrous idea possible. Katerina has long since deceased and of my knowledge Elena had too but obviously the Salvatore simpletons have managed, yet again, to bend over the laws of nature because they are oh so selfish in their own sinful desires!"

"Niklaus!" Elijah interrupted. "Perhaps it is best if we went about this in a more _diplomatic_ approach?"

Klaus seemed enraged but conceded to his brother's motion. "I want answers." He whispered pointing at Tatia with fury. The young woman just glared at his back as he went to pout by the blond woman.

Davina walked with Kol and Rebekah towards the four. "Mass compulsion," Kol announced, all too happy to actually be able to coach his little witch through something he'd only ever dreamed of performing himself. "It's simple but if all goes wrong we can turn your brains into jello." He smiled smugly.

"Kol." Elijah warned.

The young man harrumphed to which his little sister patted him on the back. "It's alright Kol, I rather enjoyed such an idea of an out turn." Rebekah sneered in the Doppleganger's direction. Davina was just about to perform the ritual, when three men covered in blood burst through the other door holding two of Klaus' guards.

"Kl – Klaus." One of the guards sputtered with blood spitting out across his jaw. The calmer looking man pulled his sword from the back that had been protruding from the man's gut. Letting the guard fall to the ground, the man looked to the older and the younger one.

Klaus' face twitched in discomfort. "What is this?!"

Elias glanced toward Louis wondering when he'd answer. When their brother didn't, Bastian brazened up. " _This_ is us having a jest." Bastian smirked, having not yet killed the other guard that he was threatening with his axe sword. "We've terminated every vampire and hybrid on the premise, in the most distinguishing of ways, I might add. My kill time is impeccable." The young teen smirked.

"Well, let me show you _my_ kill time!" Marcel menaced and was about to jet off into them but Elijah held onto his shoulder.

The oldest Original in the room found something eerily familiar about them. Had Elijah followed his sneaking suspicion the first time, he might have prevented the imposer, this Drix, from making a spectacle. Elijah refused to be played the fool once again. "What business do you have here...wolves?" Elijah, for once in all of his existence, couldn't tell. Something was off about those three, even more so than the four young women on the other side of the room. They were werewolves, of that Elijah was sure, but they held themselves in a fashion that meant more, they were _more_ , something that Elijah was not fond of.

"Simple." Louis answered, moving his vision towards the girls. "We've come to retrieve information on a Drix _Anson_. He's been falsely incriminating our family name."

Elias stepped in. "He must be punished. We were told that the Petrova Dopplegangers would hold the answers."

Kol hated being out of the loop just as much as the rest of his family, might as well dangle the bait. "So you know of the Dopplegangers?"

"Of course!" Bastian scorned. "Not everyone here is as stupid of a git as yourself." Davina raised her hand in defense, shooting a spell meant to bring down anyone who didn't relate to Klaus himself. Nothing happened. "Bit of a dud there sweetheart?" Bastian taunted.

Davina was at a loss for words. "But how?"

Elias refrained from rolling his eyes. "When you're as ancient as us you need a certain kind of witch to take one of us down. Like the one over there." Elias inclined with his head towards Elena who just watched this all with her sisters in confusion.

"If Elena's a witch, then I'm Mary Magdalen!" Rebekah outburst.

Louis could have sworn he heard Bastian let out a cough that sounded vaguely like "Bloody Mary" but then again it was Bastian. The oldest Anson moved his stare over to the straight haired Doppleganger. _Interesting..._ "We're taking the Dopplegangers."

Klaus growled. He still had unanswered questions and unfortunately the only way of finding the solution was through Elena's petty game. "Not on your life."

"Yeah..." Louis drawled out pretending to think it over. "That wasn't a request."

Without even realizing it, Elias had somehow made his way over to the girls standing behind Kat. Louis nodded to him swiftly. Elias followed the order and snapped the young girl's neck.

* * *

 **AN:/ First off, sorry about wait. And now...Duhn duhn duhn! Haha I did it! I killed the Kat and not for curiosity purposes. She had vampire blood in her system, I wonder from who? Elena's power is starting to break out and Louis finds it worthy of his own purposes...This is going to be _fun._ Drix, we didn't delve a lot into but trust me, every exert that I include him in  is meaningful. Elias' history lesson will be of some use as well, so don't just think it's just excessive droning. Justin Gilbert finally made an entrance back into the story as well as Colin and Sophie, who when I first began writing those two I had only intended for them to be side characters but now that I'm liking them more and more. I feel like they will play an even bigger roll. Stefan and Caroline made a cameo in their blissful lives, think they are ready for everything to turn to hell? And speaking of hell, Kat's own personal one may have something to do with Lucy, you know, the Bennett witch that double crossed Katherine in season 2 when she was trying to retrieve the Moonstone? The Original family still hasn't put two and two together yet but give them some credit, Klaus thought the only family he had left was the distant relative in Cary. However Elijah, the smart cookie that he is, may figure it out. Anyone else figure out who Orion, Hemming, and Kem are yet? ;) ;) and why do they know Tony? No word from either party, wondering if Marcus and Nurse Carlotta are beginning to worry? Btw, I wonder what Cami, Hayley, Freya, and Hope have been doing this whole time? They're obviously not in the Mikaelson Manor. Hey, so who would you guys rather see first in an upcoming chapter, Ansel or Mikael? They are both eventually going to make their way through but who should come first, I'm stuck, give your reason why?**

 **Well, until next time ;) Please review!**


	8. But No One Wonders of the Innocence

"Marcus!" The boy who had been previously sleeping, woke with a jolt and a light girlish squeal. Looking around he saw all of his fellow students giving him the eye in class, Mr. Kimber's to be exact.

"Yeah, Kimber?" Marcus yawned, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

Mr. Kimber gave him a 'I'm-disappointed-in-you' look. "This is the third time in the past 15 minutes. Either go home or get some sleep in the nurses office."

Yawning yet again, Marcus grabbed his stuff and slinked over down the hallway to Carlotta's base. After last talking with either groups, Marcus had only gotten so far but now that he was diving deeper and deeper into what he now considers to be a trap, neither he nor Carlotta have been able to reach the two parties since. Sitting down on the cot, Carlotta didn't even speak with him knowing how exhausted the boy must be, choosing to walk out after being paged by another teacher. With non-stop looking for clues, trying to find excuses for his friends parents and why they think it's such a good idea to stay over the girls' house (though he hadn't set foot in there since the friends dispersed, it seemed like a good solution with no actual parental to oversee them or talk to the other parent with it being completely empty) when there was obviously something very wrong going on in there town, and trying every way to track their last known whereabouts by hacking into stop light footage from his friends likely routes... Marcus was finally beaten, by sleep.

Marcus would never admit it but he was worried as hell. For Charlie who's both tough and clueless at the same time. Brady, his best bud since elementary school, no matter how dense of a jock he may be. That guy Drix, even though they just met, he was cool. Even Billy Straess, who, Marcus will begrudgingly admit, he'd not been the kindest to in the past but he hopes to make amends with that. Who Marcus especially missed were the Petrova-Barthelow people. They were his home away from home. His own parents were always working, with his dad being a high end defense attorney and his mother being on the road with her book signing all the time, Marcus appreciated Mr. Barthelow and Mrs. Petrova. Mr. Barthelow was weird and eccentric but he was the type of guy who made you feel included. Mrs. Petrova was like the mother he wished he had. She was warm, inviting, and yeah he'll admit that in middle school he thought she was pretty hot, but that waned away and she quickly took on the roll of baking cookies and decorating the house. Neither one of them had a problem with him randomly popping over just to say hello, only for him to stay well into the night or some nights even sleep over. For all the whinings the girls did, Marcus thought they were pretty laid back, easy going parents.

The girls were the ones he missed the most though. Each one of them he had a special bond with, as did most people who the girls allowed in their lives but Marcus always felt important because of meeting them. Amara was the angel who shared her crayons with him when they were in Kindergarten and all his were broken from his older brother. Tatia was the girl teammate he was always paired with on the baseball team in elementary school and even when she got better than him and could clearly beat his sorry ass, she stuck with him as a partner against the coach's wishes. Him and Kat had been pulling pranks and ganging up on adults since middle school. Marcus remembers one incident of the first time getting drunk at his father's Christmas party where him and Kat got a hold of some liquor from the cellar and ended up spending most of the night hiccuping and laughing. Elena was his first kiss, Marcus recalls a party, though whose is a blur, and a game of spin the bottle. It was nice and strange and quite possibly the best kiss of his life, even if they were only 12 and had since then had obvious others interested in one another. Marcus always proposed to the girls that if they didn't have anyone by the time they were ready to marry, Marcus would gladly take one for the team and be tied down to either one of them ( _"Or all of you at once," He'd wiggle his eyebrows in a suggestive manner. "I won't judge and who am I to break up a_ _ **beautiful**_ _bond?" To which Kat would promptly sock him in the shoulder, all of them snickering._ ). They were that important to him and he feels that every person who has ever met the girls feels the same way. Not that they had his _exact_ experiences but that they all felt apart of something special, being in the lives of the Petrova girls. It was like a magnetism.

"Oh God! You're okay!" Marcus was drawn out of his deep thinking to find a panting Drix, having a scared look on his face.

"Drix?" Marcus became alert. "When'd you get back? Where's the others? What's been happening?"

"Trouble...in the bayou...girls...trap," Was all Marcus could make out from the guy as they swiftly jogged down the mysteriously now quiet halls. "I'll explain more when we get there but I think the girls are in trouble." Drix told him as they turned the corner to a flickering hallway Marcus had never seen before. Following him, Marcus slowed his sprint until they made it to there destination. "In here," Drix said before going into the dark room himself. Marcus looked on in, not being able to see a thing. "The girls got hurt pretty badly when coming back, I brought them here hoping Carlotta could patch things up." Drix voice echoed from inside.

Taking a step in, Marcus closed the door to room C13.

* * *

Nina and Jeremy had been roaming their cell for quite some time when they felt some sort of impact from up above. Bracing the surface on which they were leaning against, the two, connected by fate, could only think one thing. "Uh-oh."

Juan Cuadarno and two other men with guns came bustling down the the steps, frantically trying to open the cell.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait, what's going on?" Jeremy asked, never once seeing the men so panicked.

As one of the guards jangled with the keys, the older man explained anxiously. "We are moving you two now. It's not safe." Juan told them as he kept shifting his eyes over towards the hall they just came through.

" _Really?_ " Nina scoffed. "I thought we were in the safest place on earth. Two of the most likely-to-be-killed-for-leverage-people, who've dealt with mystical creatures, are being protected by _humans with guns_!" She ranted as they were forced out by the two other men. "I mean seriously?! We live in a supernatural world! You really think guns would keep _us_ from harms way?"

More rumbling came from the upper stories of the town house they were under. "What _is_ going on up there?" Jeremy questioned, knowing that rumbling in small towns usually led to bombs, vampires, blood, or cave-ins...the norm. Suddenly Jeremy was struck with another thought. _"Where's my son?!_ "

"We don't have time!" Juan yelled hurriedly as he felt the rumbling under their feet grow.

Jeremy's face fell with distress. " **No!** "

Juan motioned to his helpers."Get them moving, _**now!**_ "

Without missing a beat, Nina threw a punch at one of the distracted guards. Jeremy taking the hint, grabbed the gun from the other henchman and knocked him out. Juan tried to make a grab for Nina but Jeremy was too fast. Side sweeping the elderly man, Jeremy made sure the man was down before going up behind the guard Nina was struggling with and putting him in a head lock. Weakening his state, the guard's grip loosened on the gun he was holding, allowing Nina to grab the weapon and use the bud of it to smack the goon in the face. Jeremy let the unconscious man slide to the ground, giving Nina a questioning look.

As if it was some unspoken rule, Nina explained. "I have kids too." Jeremy nodded with acceptance but Nina could tell he was still wary of trusting her. Scooping up the gun, she pointed it at Juan Cuadarno as Jeremy pulled his groaning body up against the wall.

Feeling the vibrations from whatever was happening upstairs, Jeremy pushed. "We don't have a lot of time and you threatened my family." Jeremy whispered with a vengence into the hispanic man's ear. Nina glanced at Jeremy as a shiver ran down her back.

Sure she _wanted_ him to trust her. She'd heard the stories of Jeremy Gilbert, the broken, unwanted kid, who quickly grew up and turned into the greatest defender of and for the supernatural world. He was the boy who had put himself up to be used as a pawn for when Katherine Pierce first blew into Mystic Falls. Jeremy died and came back to life, with the ability that only skilled medians wished they could have: He talked to the dead, from the legendary _Other Side_. Fighting the mark that was only bestowed upon the most esteemed hunters, Jeremy rose above it, realizing the hate was not towards vampires but those who abuse the bloodlust. Wrongly sacrificed to bring about the extremist ancient Traveler Silas, Nina thought that the Travelers had always gotten it wrong. Though Elena Gilbert had been the one to watch her life unravel, Nina forever thought that it was the girl's little brother, Jeremy Gilbert who should have truly felt the pain. He'd gone through just as much, if not more, than the Gilbert girl and yet nothing had phased him. Jeremy Gilbert pushed aside his own pain and put the lives of others first, sacrificing his own childhood. Nothing could touch him. At least, that's what Nina believed. Watching the man right now...well, everyone has their breaking point. Maybe Nina wanted him to trust her, she's just not so sure if she should trust _him_.

Jeremy went on."So I'm only going to say this once. Where. Is. My. Son."

* * *

Hope Mikaelson was sitting in the middle of her bed, typing up an essay, when a bing went off on her computer. Moving the mouse over to click it open, the 19 year old found herself face to face with the screenname of a guy she had met over the web. When you're the daughter of two of the most powerful families both in the city and bayou...finding dates that don't end up dead can be tricky.

"Hey _ADrinkonBourbonStrt_ ," She sing-songed to no one else but herself. Hope continued typing up her essay but multi-tasked in chatting with him too. "What's up?"

 _ADrinkonBourbonStrt : Nothing much whatcha doing?_

 _TheOGTribrid : Finishing an assignment. BBOOORRRIINNNGGG ;P_

 _AdrinkonBourbonStrt : Y not come party over here? I'll give us something exciting to do ;)_

Hope turned her head and listened in on downstairs. Below her were her mom and Papa (her step-father, Jackson) as they were laughing and chopping up dinner with her aunt Freya (well Hope's aunt wasn't much of a laugher but she did give small smiles and if she was in her Mom and Papa's presence the joy was hard to contain.) and their family friend Cami, all of them telling jokes and having an interesting time. Sighing, Hope typed back.

 _TheOGTribrid : Can't :( sorry. I promised my family I'd stay in tonight since they've hardly seen me since college._

 _ADrinkonBourbonStrt : …..._

 _ADrinkonBourbonStrt : That's too bad :/ I wanted to take you out._

Hope let out a whine in frustration. She really did want to spend time with some of her family tonight, Hope hadn't really seen much of them besides the extensive and lavishing gifts that her Father, Klaus sent to her dorm as rewards for not getting herself killed each semester of college. He was _so_ against her going out of state for college but her Mom backed her up in saying that it would be good for her to explore the outside of Louisiana. Reluctantly, her Father agreed and let her go. The conditions? For once, all the men in her life conspired together with one goal in mind: keep Hope safe, of course they had to do that by putting aside their differences and _not_ killing one another, which was a huge milestone in Hope's book.

Her uncle, Elijah, and Papa worked together to make sure that she had a pack of wolves and vampires in her vicinity that were loyal enough to take down anyone that may come of harm to her. Uncle Kol didn't snap her older brother, Marcel's neck in suggesting that they background check all of her roommates to make sure that she's having just the right amount of fun to tell wild stories about but that they aren't going to try and use her for some evil demise. Hope's Father was even patient enough to help uncle Kol get up to speed with Skyping her at _oppurtune_ moments so that they could focus on her magic training (actually most of the time Hope would try and keep her uncle on task as Kol would just try and snoop around to see if she's joined a sorority yet, made out with any girls, or all in all has gone on a blood binge as of recent, and why she didn't invite him to witness anything?) since Freya and Davina were constantly busy with keeping the witches in line and her uncle was a smidge of a prodigy, as he so often liked to boast about. Father made sure that every professor that they could trust was on vervain and any one they weren't sure of was able to be compelled to give Hope the utmost respect...and leeway.

At first it was a little overwhelming, especially when she first moved into the dorm and all of her roommates were standing there with their mouths hanging open at the giant plush stuffed beanie baby wolf that filled up most of the room with a blood red bow wrapped around it saying: _To my Littlest Wolf, may your education further your stunning intellect._ Along with it were, you know, five of the rarest diamonds in existence wrapped in fine silk on her bed ( _For formal outings, Love Father_ ) not to mention all of her aunt Rebekah's hand-me-down-worn-only-once-designer-fashion gowns and wasn't too much but the gifts kept coming every week, her roommates became used to it, so they stopped questioning. College, the true life experience.

Still, it was good for her to be back. Hope missed the way everyone here knew not to mess with her, even though she'd never hurt anyone unless provoked. She missed being in the loop, but most of all she missed her family. When Hope first came back, Father and Papa threw a celebratory welcome back parade and all of New Orleans was there. It didn't matter if you were vampire, wolf, hybrid, witch, or even human, they all came out to have fun. That lasted for a week then the excitement died down and Hope's kingdom was back to normal. Now she was back to going back and forth, every two weeks to split time between her Mom and Father's house and outings, which she didn't mind, she grew up living like this her whole life but lately something's been off about her mom and Hope's getting pretty damn annoyed. The girl can't pinpoint what it is but it's like her Mom's been keeping something from her. That's probably why Hope is talking to the Bourbon guy right now. Hope never had a rebellious stage but if there was ever a time to start it...

 _TheOGTribrid : I can probably sneak out later tonight, I'm sure my older bro will cover for me :) !_

 _ADrinkonBourbonStrt :..._

 _Great! Like I said I want to take you out ;)_

"Hope! Dinner!" Cami yelled up to her.

Hope signed off and closed her laptop. Closing her door to her room she had no idea what she just got into.

* * *

Hiking through the forest Charlie, Billy, Brady, and Tony followed the rest of the left over pack. Getting up close to Billy, she whispered so that only they could hear one another. "Pretty convienent that Mr. Barthelow happens to be running with the wolf pack that's opposed to us actually getting into the town with the answers."

Billy snorted. "Hey, you said it not me." Looking at the back of Mr. Barthelow's head, Billy held a curious gaze. "I thought you've known this guy almost all of your life. Why are you suddenly so suspicious?"

"Shouldn't we all be?" Charlie fired back. "I mean what does Mr. Barthelow _really_ have to hide? I may have known him since forever but how well do we really _know_ someone?"

Billy glanced at her and stared at the shorter girl for a bit with a raised eyebrow, before turning to watch Brady who was walking up ahead. "How well do you know Brady?"

Charlie scrunched her face in remembrance before answering. "Almost as long as I've known the girls, why?"

Billy shrugged. "You take him for granted sometimes, I think." Charlie sent him a skeptical look. "So far he's been the only one to have all the answers and lead us in the right direction. Yet you guys are constantly shooting down his ideas, for being a bit of a meat head he's actually pretty knowledgeable."

Charlie took this in with a grain of salt. "Why _are_ you here Billy? And don't tell me it's because of the fact that you witnessed the whole thing and are now suddenly turning into a good samaritan."

Billy tried to find the words to answer. "You guys are amazing. My whole life I've envied that. Wanting to be apart of something. A group of people that stick by your side because they _know_ you...that's what everyone wished they could have. I'm always on the outside and for once maybe I've found my way in." Suddenly, the group came to a halt.

Frantically moving her gaze around, Charlie scolded herself for not paying more attention to what these wolf packs had been disscussing up at the front of the group. "Why are we stopping?!"

Brady inclined his head a little to glance back at the girl. "Jeremiah says that normally they'd trudge right into the town but there's something blocking it."

Billy raised an eyebrow. "Something blocking what?"

"The supernatural." Tony whispered loud enough for everyone to hear. Turning to explain to the out of place teens Tony let them in on a little history. "Years ago a group of witches that were a branch of the Travelers cast a spell that wouldn't allow supernatural beings that weren't of traditional magic to enter. If they did they were to meet with their untimely death. The spell was later absorbed by a derranged warlock named Malachai Parker. But this spell..." Tony trailed off getting closer to the border but stopping just short before it standing next to the young Jeremiah. "This spell is nothing like I've ever felt. It's powerful. Deep."

The teens glanced at one another before Brady asked what was on everyone's minds. "What's it do?"

Tony hummed outstretching his hand to feel the invisible back lash. "It's like magnets. When two of the same poles meet they push one another away. Not hard, but just subtley so that they can stay within distance of one another. Obviously it works on wolves," He glanced around as the wolf packs all stood in a line next to Tony, one of them trying to inch their way through but finding that they needed to take a step back every time before going back to their initial position. "Witches too apparently." Tony turned to look at them with a raised eyebrow. "Want to try?"

The three silently agreed with one another before taking steps forward. And forward, and forward. "What do we do?" Billy asked once they were face to face with their hostage holders on the other side of the mystical spell.

"Do what you came here for." Tony answered knowing very well that Danjou was giving him a nod of approval but his pack leader was glaring at him with distaste. "Find the answers."

Charlie invtervened. "Bring down the wall." It wasn't a suggestion as more of a statement. As much as she distrusted the guy who was like an uncle to her at the moment he was the only one that they could follow the lead with.

Tony nodded in understanding. "Whatever awaits for you in that town didn't know you were coming. It didn't know who or what you were hoping to find, use that to your advantage. This spell was made to keep out the supernatural opposing it not the humans oblivious to the supernatural around them but you are going in unprotected." Tony sighed not liking this one bit. "Whoever cast this spell is powerful. Get what you need and get out."

"Petey, Skeet? Get our stuff." Lance commanded as the two ran off in the direction they just came from. "We make camp here."

* * *

The council stood in the cathedral, bantering back and forth about what is to be done about the situation.

"Sending Barthelow was a mistake!"

"He's worse than the Disgraced Pack! Who knows where his loyalties lie after that stunt he pulled all those years ago!"

"There's a reason the _Travelers_ are called to such extremes, not _traitors_ like Barthelow!"

"Council," A smooth voice commanded from the raised steps of their gathering. Turning around the Travelers' council silenced themselves in respect for their leader: Dante Machiavelli. "Antony Barthelow was once the most renowned Traveler in our legion,"

" _Once!_ " A council member coughed. Dante glared at the man who decided to plead his disrespect. "Your Eminence, we are all aware of how much loyalty you entrust in Antony Barthelow but I believe all of the council will agree with me in that we do not share the same faith." Some of the other council members murmured in agreement.

Dante raised an eyebrow at the man's defiance. "Go on."

The council member sighed, thankful that Dante Machiavelli was a more lenient and merciful leader than his father before him. "Barthelow was and forever shall be the Traveler who seemed to bring down a Disgraced Pack wolf with his single spell but even he had held supsision for not sharing it with us."

"I see privacy as something coveted by many others in this council," Dante glared at them. He had heard of the whispers that Dante would not be as powerful as his father was as head of the Travelers, especially not at a time when war was brewing. "Why should Barthelow be the first to put under scrutiny?" Dante questioned with venom as many of the council members shrank under his accusing gaze.

The council member mused aloud, having found the one thing that may catch his higher upper off guard. "Antony Barthelow also broke the one rule," Dante tensed knowing where this was going. "He fell for a Petrova Doppelganger." Dante said nothing but the council member went on. "Forgive me your Eminence, but was it not you who was to be betrothed to the Doppelganger, Nina Petrova?"

"Yes." Dante answered tightly.

His council member smirked now having Dante right where he wanted him. "And was it not Antony Barthelow, your best friend and confidante that defied the law and ritual that would bind the Petrova girl's blood that would give the Travelers the power needed through your perfect breeding?"

Dante was getting aggitated. "Your point, councilman?"

"My point is," The councilman turned to try and persuade the other members. "How can anyone put their trust in a man who could betray a whole race," The council member turned back to smirk at Dante. "Who had just as easily betrayed his best friend in stealing the love of his life?"

* * *

Getting to his feet, Jeremiah sighed. He'd been taking watch waiting outside the tent for decisions to be made. That's the thing though Jeremiah hated waiting. It was all a bunch of nothing. Jeremiah thought he'd be bored to death staring out into the woods he couldn't pass.

"Your shift is up." Meg said abruptly plopping herself beside him and beginning to take advid watch.

"Umm... Thanks?" Jeremiah answered before he started to walk away. Normally, he would just walk over to the tent and ask what else he was needed for but this wasn't his pack and he wasn't about to keep taking orders from them. His was somewhere in New Orleans getting what Jeremiah so desperately wanted, needed even, back. Trudging through the woods with his hands in his pockets, Jeremiah felt something. Something to make the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. Glancing back, he noticed that the camp didn't stir but that wasn't going to stop him.

Walking further, Jeremiah felt himself be pulled in by some force. Stopping when he got to an open area, Jeremiah was surprised to see a person standing before him. "Hey." The man greeted with caution.

Jeremiah nodded back. "Hey..." He'd never seen this being before. The older man looked like a human like himself but their was an air about him, something that screamed wolf. Another thing that unnerved Jeremiah? The man seemed to be an older carbon copy of himself. Except for the eyes. Jeremiah has those from his mother.

The older man smirked. "Jeremiah, right?" The caution that the young wolf had held slid off his face and was now replaced with fear. "Yeah I remember you...good thing you don't remember me."

And with that Jeremiah doubled over in pain silently screaming. Walking over to the boy the older man laughed coyly. "What's the matter Petrova? Don't want to spend time with your father?"

* * *

 **AN:/** **So sorry for the wait yet again. This delves more into the backstory of our secondary characters. Why is Tony considered an ex-Traveler? Who is this young Jeremiah? Why didn't Charlie and Brady ever find Tony supscious? Will Marcus find Drix suspiscious? Who's Hope Mikaelson really talking to? Is Dante for or against the current of the brewing war? Will Nina and Jeremy find a way out? These are the questions that I plant to you...**

 **Please review! Enjoy and tell me what you think ;)**


	9. Or How Far We Will Travel

Shaking her from her slumber, Louis observed as the little Traveler in training stirred from her wake. "Uh," She groaned with Louis slowly bringing her into a sitting position on the ground. "Where am I? What happened?"

"You're safe," Louis answered. "in Virgina."

That jolted Elena awake."Virgina!?" Scrambling to her feet, she tried to put as much space between herself and the two intimidating men in front of her. "How'd we end up here?!" Franticly turning her head from side to side, Elena could only see Amara within the vicinity of the woods. Elena _had_ to find Tatia and Kat.

Louis stared at her with an expression that said she couldn't be this naïve. "I baited you into stressing you out." Elena seemed to be processing everything up until the point at the angry Mikaelson's mansion.

Elena pointed to both of them. "You were arguing with the Mikaelsons and then..." She trailed off, not really remembering what had happened after that.

"Then Louis here started putting pressure on you." Elias declared. "You're a simple witch really."

" _Excuse_ _me_?!" Elena choked out trying to understand at all what the two were referring to. The past couple of days have been confusing to say the least.

Grabbing her by the chin, Louis noted how small she was compared to himself, possibly a foot and half shorter, it was easy to stare into her eyes and seek what he wanted. "Now I may not have compulsion, like those others, but I've done my fair share of persuasion." He told her noticing how she was trembling, unsuccessfully holding back her fear that he could clearly see in her almond-doe eyes. "I started nagging you. I know how an untrained Traveler witch works, and you _are_ untrained, make no mistake about it. The easiest to control." He chuckled darkly as he shook his head with mirth, making Elena tense. "Funny thing is that you'll be the most complex witch to grace this planet." Brushing back some of her hair with his free hand, Louis felt Elena's body slack just a bit. "Witch of Nature, Traveler, Expression, _and_ Magik, you might even give a Bennett witch a run for their money."

Letting go of her, Elena tripped over her own feet, falling flat on her butt, then crawled backwards to the nearest tree. "If I'm the one who got us here," Elena began, noting how Louis smirked like he was the Big Bad Wolf and she was Little Red Riding Hood. "Where are the rest of my sisters?"

This time Elias stepped in to offer his two cents. "There were some _complications_ ," He rolled his eyes at the very word. "to your first time full fledge incantation."

"Complications?" Elena breathed.

Elias inwardly groaned. "That being that _it was your first full fledge incantation_."

* * *

Tatia sat straight up on the couch, watching for the people in the room to make a slip up so that she and Kat (who happened to be sitting right next to her, doing the same) may find a way to escape. This was no longer a rode trip about _searching_ for answers. First they were going to get out of here, find Elena and Amara, and _**get**_ answers!

"Look at you." Klaus taunted the younger man who had arrived with the two others all bloodied up.

It did not go unnoticed when Elena cried out in pain one final time and blue cold flames admitted from her before she, Amara, and the two other men disappeared without a trace. Kol and Davina seemed to be grumbling about something that Tatia couldn't pick up on. Kat had awaken just moments before hand and immediately, quicker in fact than Tatia had ever seen her sister move before, went to consume the blood of one of the dead guards on the floor. By that time, Tatia had just shaken it off with a shrug and a ' _this might as well happen_ ' sort of attitude. Kat seemed like she was having a ball, until she realized how gross and sloppy looking she must appear before running over to the couch that they were currently sitting on. Everyone's emotions seemed to be running on high and the two calling the shots were no different, or perhaps she should think three, since the teen who appeared to be about her and her sister's age, maybe a bit older, was smirking up a storm at Klaus.

"No grandeur calvary and suddenly you're not so tough." Klaus smiled devilishly but it seemed to slip of into a frown again when the other blonde's smirk didn't fall from his face. "Are you mocking me, boy?!"

The younger blond man's snickers immediately turned into chortles of amusement. Clearing his throat to reign in his emotions, the young man answered. "You know I've met and seen all instances of you," He referred to Klaus with a high knowledge of past experiences. "And in all my encounters I've vowed to bring your less than worthy life into an abundance of torture. Unhinge it from the edges and let the rest of you unravel into the slow decent of chaos and madness." His feral smile widened with each passing word, giving Tatia the idea that not all psychos hide behind a mask like Drix, some enjoy flaunting their terror. "Perhaps _chaos_ shouldn't have been my aim. That's what you seem to surround yourself with, right? Chaos, darkness, descent?" He questioned happily as Klaus remained cautiously on the other side of the room, with his eyes narrowed and watching. At this point Tatia became very aware of the fact that her and Kat were sitting smack dab in the middle of two deadly predators. " _Boy?!_ " The teen fake laughed right in the Mikaelson's faces. Brining his own to a serious halt he jestured with his eyes to Klaus. "Maybe you aren't so much unlike your _father_ after all."

Klaus would have sped over to rip the younger man to shreds, had not Kat's knight held him back. "You seem to be in no place to taunt us." He spoke with an air of confidence. "Though I am curious as to who it is I'm speaking with when they bring such high demands and expectations to the table."

The teen relented. "Bastian."

"Well young Bastian, as informative as this encounter has been, I must inquire what it is you and your party have done with the Miss Elena and her Doppleganger?" That word seemed to make Kat tense next to her, with Tatia's own spine feeling the spindling chills of ice climb up her back. _**Doppleganger.**_ However strangely familiar that word may be, right now didn't seem to be the time for talking.

"They've been taken into the proper protective custody." Bastian stated slinking closer to the couch where Kat and Tatia were residing in. "A supernatural being is on the loose by the name of Drix Anson – our name to be exact. We suspect that he is working with daemonic entities that hold the powers of Magik," Both Tatia and Kat noticed how the Mikaelson family members flinched or tensed at the word that held more obvious meaning than a rabbit out of a hat. "His actions with finding Lucifer's Army have already caused quite a stir. My pack leader and I have rightfully been informed of the great destructions he will cause and because these four," Bastian motioned over at the twins sitting avidly on the couch. "Are involved _yet again._ My pack insist on getting them on the right side of this fight before the Travelers." Kol seemed to raise an eyebrow at mention of Travelers. "And no you fool," Bastian answered before he could ask. "Not those that run with the likes of Silas, they were neurotic extremist. These Travelers have a much _different_ approach to getting what they think they deserve."

Rebekah stepped forward finally finding her place in all of this. "If what you speak is true, wouldn't it not be more beneficial to keep the Dopplegangers under the watchful eye of the Originals?"

Bastian shrugged with his condescending grin. "My pack is biased as to how we plan to cause your family excruciation. You want them dead as much as anyone should." Bastian pointed out. "What's in it for you lot?"

Rebekah went on. "Your perpetrator, this Drix, he mentioned someone very dear to my heart-"

"Oh, sod off Rebekah!" Klaus growled.

"He could very well be-"

" _ **I saw it!**_ " Klaus roared, turning on her, pinning Rebekah to the wall with his hand, choking her throat. " _I was there._ _ **Remember**_ _? I was_ _ **there**_ _!_ " Pulling his hand back and stepping away, Klaus looked his sister dead in the eyes. "Henrik is dead." Klaus told them all with a certain ferocity. "Nothing can change that."

Kol took the reigns for once, breaking the eerie tension. "Perhaps we have a common interest."

This seemed to peak Bastian's interest. "I'm listening."

* * *

One of the perks about Colin and Sophie being together has always been in Colin's favor. Colin can pinpoint the exact reason he fell in love with his beautiful wife. It was because she was intelligent badass! His achievements weren't ever overlooked by Sophie. Colin has and always will be a lovable gifted-minded goofball. Emphasis on the goofball. But many seemed to never look far pass that. Sophie was one of the many few that ever did. Finally managing to get their tight vervain restraints off, Sophie questioned Colin.

"Do you remember when you became the VP of the Boston Society of Landscape Architects, in 1913?"

Colin gave her a strange look. "When did I tell you about that?" He asked opening the door of there cell, trying to decide which direction of the tunnel they should take off in.

Sophie hummed. "When I was still trying to ignore your seducing way of advances and wanting to keep our status as-"

"Fuck buddies?" Colin laughed darkly, remembering, but trying to forget, that they didn't always have the most platonic relationship in the past.

" _Bed_ _friends._ " Sophie stressed.

"The kids are calling it fuck buddies now a days Babe, get with the times." Colin added cheekily. "Still don't remember telling that factoid though."

"You were only 17 at the time and the only reason you even came into the position of VP is because you _came into_ the President of the Society's granddaughter and promised to not go the press about that little incident so long as you went up." Sophie grumbled. "Not like it was a problem for you before."

"I love it when you talk dirty. Pretty little things Margaret and Moira, now both deceased but I only ever stopped in to say hi with a gift on Moira's birthday, anyway. Why?" He asked as they walked down the tunnel way.

"Did you actually earn your _initial_ spot on that society or did you just want to be part of something so not to feel like a _Boston_ _Bug_?" Sophie sing songed. If there was one thing that Colin had a love-hate relationship with it's that he had to climb the ladder of ambition to be privileged in the Massachusetts area. Colin's not like herself, in being born into it. A real life Jay Gatsby but a man of the people. Born on the streets of Boston, Colin was a newsie and at the time 50 cents _might_ have given him lunch and 60 gave it to him: 1 loaf of bread. Wishing for something better he'd strived on making schemes and playing baseball. That much is all that Sophie could ever get out of him with random fact such as this one thrown her way at one of the _opportune_ times. Other than that she didn't really know. Sophie had just come out as a survivor from the actual real life trauma that was the sinking of the Titanic, a year before (though the immortality of being a vampire would have insured her safety. The fact that so many aboard in first class were part of the vampire hunting society did not sit well with her, but she fooled them all into thinking she was willing to aid them in their ongoings once docked. Some of them she did. If there is one thing she learned from Katherine Pierce it's that there is no such thing as a bad connection, only bad bluffers.) and only briefly passed through Boston to hear what the Women's City Club was all about. Except she didn't really know Colin until he hit his 30s, picked up by the Travelers to be one of their liaisons in the vampire community up east. Her husband literally plays Drake's Started From the Bottom in the shower, just because he thinks it's his theme song and he knows it annoys her (she utterly hates rap).

Colin's face turned smug. "I built you that Victorian house that's almost an exact replica of the one you grew up in, didn't I?"

"I want to go back to the buried city." Sophie stated. "The fountain in the center holds Magik but the town..."

Colin's face lit up with realization. "The town is perfectly in tact!"

"That's right." Sophie confirmed. "And if that Magik is doing it's job, then I want to see what it _really_ is hiding."

* * *

Kem had business to attend to. Business that was long over due. Acquiring a plane ticket to a land, where he once thought him and the rest of his family safe, was no problem. Actually getting there to seek out the sixth most sought out person in the world, was hard. Although Kem's no stranger to hardship. It's ironic, Kem thinks that even though the person he is looking for was born in a land that was foreign to him when he first arrived, that eventually they'd be drawn back to _his_ place of birth. Romania. Walking through the palace Kem knew his connections had come in handy. Speaking in his native tongue he spoke with one of the servants. "I'm here about the Czech Republic girl. Though she is no longer among us her essences is of importance to my cause. The lives of a whole race hinges on this moment." The servant bowed before opening the door to a chamber. He was here, in one of the world wonders of the supernatural community. The Pool of Deity.

The room was shrouded in shadows, only to marked with the soft glow of candle light. A golden path was paved to and rimed around the clear blue pool with red velvet drapes and pillow lining the areas around it.

Sitting at the edge of the glowing waters, Kem began his chant and though it was worded in his first language he cast it in the language only dark hearts can consume, Magik. " _Să-ți fie_ _cunoscut. Caut cel care a iubit în zadar. Care a iubit că de la cinci sute de ani de durere. Îmi doresc o fata care a trecut deja. De cealaltă parte sau Pacea este neclar. Aduceți morți! Fac apel la ea, fata cu inima neiubit!*_ "

The flames from the candles roared, stretching themselves higher than thought possible. Kem repeated his spell louder, only this time he didn't get to finish because before he could, a beautiful young girl burst forth from the water. Kem stood up examining the girl with hungry eyes. As naked as the day she was born, the girl was everything that Kem had imagined and hoped for. Skin as smooth and olive toned as her mother with a complexion as clear as day, makeup would not be an issue. Brown curled hair that fell damply against her shoulders and back. Almond-doe shaped eyes, dark enough to entice mystery and deciet but beautiful enough to hold attention and believe innocence. Young supple cheek bones that could no less give a winning billion dollar smile as well as the grandest smirk. A body already filled with curves, to the swell of her round breasts, to the inward of her taut tight stomach, to the slow descent outward of her hips that led to long fit legs. One feat that Kem couldn't help but take pride in was the girl's lips. Though thinner on top and slightly fuller on the bottom they mirrored his own, and in that Kem had to enjoy. For the girl's mother must have thrown an internal fit when she took sight of those lips.

It was then that Kem saw the young girl getting antsy, having just burst out of warm water to be met with the crisp air of Romania. Grabbing a near by velvet drape, Kem threw it at her. "Welcome back. You are 15 years old, your name is Nadia Petrova, and everything is just about to hit you right..." Eyes almost rolling to the back of her head, Nadia fainted while Kem caught her. "Now." Applying a kiss to her forehead, Kem laid her down in front of the pool then began to walk out. "Good-night sweet princess."

* * *

Walking into the little bar and restaurant known as _The Mystic Grill,_ Charlie, Brady, and Billy sighed at their table.

"Nothing out of the ordinary here." Charlie told them sullenly as they observed the patrons of the small town's diner. One person did stand out to Billy though. A blond man who was up at the bar kept throwing glances their way and that put Billy on edge.

"Mom, Dad, and I came here to eat when we were on vacation." Brady explained as Charlie looked at the menu. Billy watched as the older man left the bar and started walking towards their table. "The portions are big and the food's okay but nothing compares to _Dina's & Dinah's_."

"Well I guess we're not doing a good enough job then." The blond guy put in, finally arriving at their table with a friendly but cautious smile. "Matt Donovan." He introduced to the teens. "I'll be your server today, what can I get for you?"

Charlie recalling what Brady just said spoke for the table. "We'll just have a plate of bacon cheese fries, thank you."

Matt scribbled this down on his little notepad. Glancing up, he watched Charlie smile enamoredly, Brady pouting at all the food he could possibly have ordered from the menu had Charlie not spoken, and Billy shifting his gaze away from Matt, as if trying to signal something to the others at the table. "You three aren't from around here, are you?"

Charlie giggled nervously. "What gave us away?"

Matt smiled fondly having his suspicions melt away at these three teens. They were way too uncertain of this place to be supernatural and want to target it. And even if they were, Mystic Falls hasn't had any Big Bad's in years or any other problems. "Well for one, you're probably the only girl in here today who's not getting ready for The Founder's Ball or hasn't ordered a salad for her snack."

"Founder's Ball?" Billy questioned, hoping that this might bring them closer to what they were trying to find.

"Basically everyone will be gathered at the Lockwood mansion to party. The whole place turns into a ghost town leading up to it." Matt explained.

"Really?" Brady asked, an idea popping into his head. "What, do you guys shut down the whole town or something?"

"Nope, people are just there partying, having a good time." Matt told them, putting his notepad in his pocket. The waiter chuckled. "Even if the owner of the property hasn't been seen in years."  
"What do you mean?" Charlie now saw the wheels turning in Brady's mind and decided to join in.

Matt shrugged. "The last remaining member of the Lockwood's left Mystic Falls a long time ago. No one's seen or heard from him in years."

"Sounds like you're taking it kind of personally." Billy baited.

Matt let out another shrug. "Not too much. We played football together in high school and he actually was a very good friend of mine but some stuff came up and people grow apart. I was proud of him leaving for better things."

Charlie jumped in. If what Marcus had last said to them was true about Tyler Lockwood, he may be their ticket to whatever it is they need to find. "So, say a few tourists wanted to do something fun this week, where would we find the Lockwood mansion?"

* * *

Drix panted as a cold sweat shook through his body. Leaning against a locker, the teen clutched his chest in pain, feeling the dark ash from inside grow more fragile. Luring Marcus into the the room had been easy but it was hard for Drix to display some self control when he was in need of devouring a soul. Though from the vibes that Marcus was giving off, since Drix met him, the young human probably wouldn't be much of an appetite anyway. Marcus may be a sarcastic pessimistic prick but he didn't have half as much of the pain or suffering that Drix was led to believe. He was just an ignored little child, trying to get attention, not nearly worthy enough to fulfill Drix's unkempt hunger. Being The Original Werefox had its perks...and its drawbacks. For years he'd been in the shadows, waiting, but no more. Drix was hungry for revenge.

* * *

Finally finding his way through the underground tunnels, Justin walked along the paved caverns. Thinking back to when he was little, Justin remembered a time when his father would tell him stories of his early days into the supernatural world. He explained to Justin these tales, as if they were adventures in a bedtime story, and essentially that's what they were. Bedtime stories. Except they weren't. Justin was very partial to the ones about how the young teen outcast died and came back to life in a single instance and was granted with the ability to see ghosts. Of course Justin always wondered why _he_ could see them without ever dying but that was beside the point. If he took the time to think about it though it made sense. Both his parents had seen ghosts. His father at one point of his life could, if he held a connection with them, and his mother had been on a hunt with her family when she'd been knocked unconscious and struck by lightning. In a way Justin knew that he was always supposed to see ghost. It was predestined.

Finally making it to the edge of the cavern, Justin had been greatfull. It felt like he had been walking for days. What he was unaware of was that he _had_ and was now in the state of Louisianan.

* * *

Compelling their way onto the plane had been easy. Keeping the peace on it not so much. After getting Kat something that the Davina girl had mentioned as a daylight ring before the sun started to set, she was uncerimoniously shuffled (shoved!) into a window seat with her knight and shining armor sitting stiffly next to her. Unbeknown to him that since awakening as a vampire (that's what little super psycho Bastian spit out at her) she'd been able to reign in some flashes of a life she can't remember. Of course now that she was a vampire everything was heightened, like her pain tolerence. What normally would have hurt a human and caused her to black out now came to her in random thoughts that she could be lucid for. Glancing in front of her, she noted how Bastian took the seat by the window and Tatia next to him. He'd strategically placed himself perpendicular to both of his prizes. Clever. This Klaus guy though had thought just of the same thing and placed himself on the isle across from Tatia and Bastian, making it so that if Bastian got out to the isle he'd have to face Klaus. Idiots. Smart but total idiots. When Kat found an opening in this little game, she'd grab Tatia, and they'd run for the hills first chance they got.

Subtly staring at the man who had fed her his blood to heal her sprained ankle and inadvertently caused her rebirth, Kat kept seeing flashes of memories before her. Memories or perhaps daydreams, for they seemed so outdated and yet so authentic. Running through a garden in the finest of gowns and fabric laughing as he chased her with a seemingly joyful smile himself. They seemed happy. She even speculated to be lovers.

"It is impolite to stare, Katerina." Her knight told her, not once bothering to look up from the newspaper he was pretending to read.

"Sorry." She apologized awkwardly.

Suddenly Kat was hit with another flashback. Her knight had long hair as before and was dressed like royalty while she was dolled up in a beautiful garnet red gown, hair up and gracious. "Hello." She greeted with an amused and curious look upon her face as the knight stared at her like she'd been an angel brought down from above.

"Forgive me," He said to her with warmth, realizing he'd had his mouth hanging open. "You remind me of someone."

"Katerina," A voice said off to the distance. "May I introduce, the Lord Elijah." She was shocked by a grand lord taking sudden interest in a peasant such as herself.

Curtsying shakenly, it was if the breath was taken from her. "Pleasure My Lord."

He grabbed her hand gently but firmly, as if he never wanted to let go but also steadying her, as he brought it to his lips and kissed it. "Pleasure's mine, Katerina." And then it ended.

Deciding to put these daydreams to the test, Kat found a similar conversation. "You look like someone I know." Kat told him, noticing that he glanced up for just a second to see her out of the corner of his eye.

"I find that highly unlikely." He told her, continuing to turn the page of his newspaper. "My face is that of one that can't be replicated."

Kat narrowed her eyes at him, unsure if he was making fun of her or just simply believing that she was beneath him. Rolling her eyes when he didn't bother to carry on the conversation, Kat huffed sarcastically. "Well it's a pleasure to meet you too, _My Lord_." And in the blink of an eye Elijah's hand had wrapped itself around one of Kat's upper arms.

" _Where_ did you hear that?" He asked her unnaturally calm and hold on her too firm. Kat just looked at him with fear.

* * *

Elena sat by the campfire starting into the flames. Amara had been knocked out since arriving in Virgina and Elena was starting to think that it was her doing. Feeling someone sit farther down from her Elena saw Louis out of the corner of her eye.

He tossed her a bag of apple chips, thanking him she started to eat them slowly as silent tears streamed down her face. "From what I've heard you were supposed to be the most put together of them all, this time around."

She had no idea what he was referring to but she guessed it had something to do with her and her sisters. "Sorry," Elena apologized, instantly wiping the tears away from her face with the back of her hand. "I'm not usually so-"

"Helpless, breakable?" He provided for her as he ate at his own snack.

"Yeah." Elena agreed quietly, looking down at her chips.

"You used to be." Louis told her nonchalantly, popping another chip into his mouth.

Elena brought her eyes to face him. "What?" She questioned not understanding. Her family and friends had always known her as being the most grounded person, not someone who breaks in an instant. If anything she was more put together than even their mother and she seemed to have life figured out.

"Your past life." He stated like it was no big deal. "I heard you were kind of a Mary Sue but I can understand you breaking down right now. Witches; no one really knows how much of your powers aren't just drawn from the sources around you but yourself as well."

Elena just memorized him in how he looked, now. Beforehand he was covered in blood and had a feral feel about him. Now cleaned up with his sandy blond hair no longer matted in dirt, his clothes changed from his blood stained ones, and his face holding no trace of attack, Elena would almost say that his face wasn't so constricted with responsibility. Almost. She had no doubt that, when the time comes, it would be he who would be the one to kill her. Not the shadow soldiers, not Drix, not even Klaus. Louis _would_ kill her, Elena could feel it in the air.

* * *

 **AN/: Yet again sorry for such a long wait. I had written myself into a hole and didn't know how to get out of it until just very recently. I knew where I wanted the Orginals gang to end up traveling and making their way through this journey with all or some of the Ansons but i figured from the last chapter that wasn't going to be doable if I want this to go in the direction I wanted. I already know the ending to the story so I just have to figure out how to get there. That's why I seperated Bastian from his brothers and Kat and Tatia from Elena and Amara. For there to be developement there's going to be a lot of twists and turns. Anyway... Marcus is still being held captive in the mysterious disappearing room. Elena's powers are coming out faster and stronger than that of a normal witch (of course whoever said anything about her being a _normal_ witch) so of course the discharge is going to be heavier and the spells aren't going to be completely right. Bastian might put aside his differences _for the time being_ in order to keep his oldest brother's mission a go. How long do you think _that_ will last? Rebekah may or may not believe that Drix Anson is Hendrik Mikaelson but she should really watch herself, just because he's her little brother doesn't mean that he's going to be all lovey dovey to the family (he did attack them after all)! Colin and Sophie made it back into the picture with a little backstory for them. I really like the idea of Colin being a real life Jay Gatsby and was inspired by the concept from my sister who suggested it after saying that he'd be so much cooler like that. Sophie on the other hand is still an enigma, even to her own husband. Did you catch that little mention of Katherine Pierce? The way I see it Colin and Sophie are the Mr. and Mrs. Smith of this story. They love eachother and use one another but can they trust one another? And who's to say they aren't playing their own side of things? Kem reserected someone  very important. Welcom back Nadia! Honestly I loved the Nadia arch and felt that they could have done _so much_ with it... but of course Julie Plec loves to suck the fun out of my hopes and dreams for the show like the real life vampire diaries writer she is. Anywho Nadia's going to be a key player but I made her 15 years old for a reason that will tie into all of this so don't just be flamin' and saying: "Well that's dumb!" I wonder why Kem just brought her back only to leave her to her own devices? Brady, Charlie, and Billy are closer than ever to finding what they'll be needing to get home safe on this journey. Especially with the help and thanks of one underrated character by the name of Matt Donovan, Mystic Falls very own human! Will they find Tyler or at least the answers to who put up the other force field that's not allowing supernatural creatures of any kind in? Justin Gilbert is sure confused but he's about to be dropped into some serious shiz! Brought in a little Kalijah tension for all of you because honestly they're just more likeable than Haylijah! But don't worry Haylijah fans I'm going to make this interesting for you too. Just because Jackson's in the picture doesn't mean their ship is canon ;) Oh yeah, Hope... you'll come back in with some interesting finds too my little tribrid! Louis is waiting for the inventable but what it is who knows? The Silas dopplegangers are going to be more indepthly addressed don't worry I'm not totally writing them off I'm just finding a loophole because the whole cure season's only up's were finding out Kalijah was another team racing for it, Amara being the first to start the Dopplegangers, Silas himself, and yeah that was basically it. These Traveler's have a much different goal in hand and Dante is definitely _NOT_ leading their intentions...do I smell a coup afoot? Welcome Back Viewers to : 'Trova Trot please send reviews when you can :)**

 **Translation Time:**

 ***Let this be known. I seek the one who has loved in vain. Who loved that from five hundred years of pain. I wish for a face that has already passed. To the Other Side or Peace is unclear. Bring forth the dead! I call upon she, the girl with the unloved heart!**


	10. And The Faces We Will Take

**AN/: So here I thought we'd put together how I see the cast of the story so far. I've chosen these people either because A) they've worked with previous cast members before and I find their chemistry amusing. 2. They are actors that aren't really well known but I seem to find them spectacular. Or finally I just really really wanted to use them in my story! Anyway this is who I envision when righting the cast. You don't have to take on their faces when reading the story it's just here to give insight on who I see :) Again I love reviews.  
**

 _ **'Trova Trot**_

 _ **Cast:**_

Nina Petrova – Emmanuelle Chiriqui

Young Nina Petrova – Nina Dobrev

Tony Barthelow – TJ Thyne

Young Tony Barthelow – Nick Thurston

Dante Machiavelli – Kevin Connolly

Young Dante Machiavelli – Callan McAuliffe

Tatia Petrova – Nina Dobrev (Degrassi curly hair season 7)

Kat Petrova – Nina Dobrev (Vampire Diaries Katherine Pierce Civil War Flashbacks)

Elena Petrova – Nina Dobrev (Vampire Diaries straight hair seasons 1-3)

Amara Petrova – Nina Dobrev (Degrassi season 6)

Drix Anson/Hendrik Mikaelson – Dylan O'Brien

Greg Kimber – Common

Charlie Kimber – Aisha Dee

Brady Crowlou – Brenton Thwaites

Marcus/Marquis de Los Santos – Brennan Mejia

Billy Straess – Noah Guthrie

Colin Pache – Chris Hardwick

Sophie Pache – Sophie Turner

Danjou – Trai Byers

Anabel – Elle Fanning

Nikalos/Louis Anson – Garrett Hedlund

Elias Anson – Johnny Weston

Bastian Anson – Thomas Brodie-Sangster

Mariah Anson – Sasha Pieterse

Meg Darronoe – Shay Mitchell

Jeremiah Petrova – Ian Michael Nelson

Nadia Petrova (15 years old) - Willa Holland

Kem – Firass Dirani

Hemming – Marc Minardi

Orion – Ari Boyland

Justin Gilbert – Tom Phelan

Jeremy Gilbert (Grown Up) – Jeremy Renner

Chelsea Gilbert – Sienna Miller

Matt Donovan (Grown Up) - Matt Lauria

Carlotta the nurse – Patricia Belcher

Juan Cuadarno – Ricardo Montalban

Hope Mikaelson – Isabel Lucas


	11. With the Blood Washing Me Down The River

**AN1.:/ First off I want to say thank you to those of you who have read so far. Special shoutouts to _xXxAngelStormxXx_ and _ScarletRose, Scooter121, chhavi, Savily, ilaria!_ My faithful reviewers. You guys mean so much :) Truly! Any ideas send them my way and they might make their way in if it fits into the direction I want the story to go! Anyway I'm putting this first note here because this is where I strongly urge that readers look at the rating. Though I feel that some of the content is in its confinds some of it is borderlining the next step up. Ladies and gentlemen the rating will be going up with time. Steadily of course but it will be going up. It's just how the story is going to go. With that said, onward!**

* * *

Freya holds disdain for her younger half-brother. He is as powerful as he is weak, and yet here she is years after he had murdered their father. Freya's not blind, she knows that Niklaus is just as lost as in father's love as he is in hers and yet... she's here. She holds the biggest resentment for him. Taking away the one thing in her life she kept fighting to see again. Stupidly selfish in his own gain for power, he put his needs before his family. Then again, it was in the protection _of_ his family and Freya would be mendacious if she were to say that she didn't care for Hope's well-being. The girl has, and always will be, her start over into caring for another. A chance missed for her and her would be offspring. And like Rebekah (the girl Freya has also grown fond of) has said time and time again, the family's expression is: _**Always and Forever.**_ Like true Originals, no matter what the breed. Vampire. Werewolf. Witch. Hybrid. Tribrid. It does not matter, what does is family. _**Family Above All**_ as Elijah so eloquently puts it. For that Freya will choose to agree with. Even if she doesn't believe in her monstrous kingly brother.

Finishing with stacking the dishes in their rightful cabinet, Freya heard a cell phone buzz on the table. Turning towards the laughs that were admitting from the family room as everyone sat around playing board games, the thing they have been doing for the past week, Freya glanced at the buzzing phone again. Not wanting to disturb them, the eldest Mikaelson dried off her hands and walked over to pick up the cell. Noting the purple casing, Freya unlocked Hayley's phone screen only to have it filled with texts.

 _Unknown:_ _The plan has been set in motion._

 _When the time is right, strike! We will not wait for your phase to finish._

 _If failure is to happen, do not contact in hopes of survival._

 _You are expendable to us._

Suspicious and confused by such a conversation, Freya cautiously glanced at the doorway that lead from the kitchen to the family room. The wolf girl had been on edge these past couple of days and for what reason no one could pin point. From what she kept up with through Elijah, the wolf faction of New Orleans had been placid this past year. One may even say that it was showing signs of progression and peace towards the vampiric community and while Niklaus may choose to place that triumph on himself, in being that his hybrids have brought each faction closer in working with one another, the witch faction felt an unease. Freya, Davina, Kol, and even Rebekah, who had tapped into her witch heritage at one point, had cautiously spoken to one another this feeling in the night but could not for the best of them pinpoint where this uncertainty was originating from. Now Freya was positive it was from the wolves.

For all intensive purposes Hayley was a good mother. She listened to her daughter, didn't back down from a disagreement with Hope's father about their take on Hope's actions and how they should discipline the young girl (though such instances were far few to none), and often was very good at managing time with being both an Alpha of the werewolf faction and a mother to one of the most powerful supernatural creatures in the world. Still that didn't explain Hayley's demeanor as of late. Freya was not the only one who could sense the change in her attitude, the others could see it as well. Hayley was snappy and irritated over the simplest things as of late. Almost as if she was...

Staring down at the cell in her hand Freya did the one thing that every Mikaelson was prone to doing. She played the game. Typing a response on the phone Freya was eager to the answer.

 _You:_ _Everything should go as according to plan._

 _Nothing is to come undone. I won't disappoint._

Waiting for a response Freya might have felt a bit guilt had she not instilled upon herself the meaning of protection, whether for yourself or for those you _may_ (it is a loose term for this family but she has grown quiet close to learning how to love again with her siblings) care about. Then it happened.

 _Unknown:_ _Good. You will be rewarded for your deeds as promised if everything falls into place._

 _You:_ _I trust you WILL hold up your end of the bargain?_

 _Unknown:_ _Right down to the last Petrova._

At this sentence, Freya couldn't help but scrunch her eyebrows in confusion. The word it was so _foreign_ and yet familiar. It felt like as a witch she should have an inkling of what the word means to her but as a Mikaelson the word _Petrova_ she felt almost as if that she had staked claim into whatever it meant. Like it was bound to this family for reasons far beyond her life in captivity. Deleting these last few messages Freya set the phone down in the position on the table it had been in before right when Hayley walked in.

"Is this yours?" Freya asked the girl with a convincing innocent smile.

Hayley rolled her eyes and tsked at herself. " _There_ it is." She grabbed it from the blond witch's hand. "I had just went to my pocket to check what time it was. Almost had a heart attack when I found it wasn't there." Freya could see her lying through her teeth and to anyone who hadn't been familiar to this family or it's yearly situations might have been fooled.

Freya eyed the girl as she unlocked her phone and scanned through it. "Expecting something important?" The Mikaelson threw out the lure with a curiousness that she had perfected in scamming.

"Hmm?" Hayley hummed, finally locking her phone again and sliding it in her pocket. "No," She shrugged with a wave of her hand. "Just hoping the wolves that are on patrol tonight don't whine about missing all the action." The brunette playfully laughed. "They've grown to really enjoy seeing Hope again." And with that the werewolf girl walked back to the living room. Freya with narrow eyes soon followed.

* * *

"Something's wrong." Bastian stated to no one in particular as he looked up and stared blankly ahead. Tatia had been listening intently on the conversation behind her involving Kat and Mr. McJawline, until she felt somethings sounded personal and now she was watching the guy, who could easily pass for the next rendition of Norman Bates, with a raised eyebrow. "We're rearranging seats." he told her with a straight face. "Now!" Bastian commanded, glaring at the two tense vampires that were in a stand off of there own.

"While I am not inclined to taking orders from a mere child," Elijah told them, not bothering to take his eyes off Kat (whether he was going to kill her, kiss her, eat her, or all three, because it really depended on who was watching and how they were perceiving it) "I do think it would do Katherine some good if we departed for some air." He said standing up, ready to switch seats with Kol to sit with Davina.

"It's Katerina." Kat whispered with mirth, feeling as though the first time he said her full name was on instinctual habit and now using this past alias was out of spite.

Elijah swiveled his head in alarm back at her, right as Kol was standing to move. "Pardon me?"

"My name." Kat dared with fire in her eyes, giving Elijah a face that said loathing. "It's Ekaterina."

"Здравейте ***** ," Klaus came strutting towards the now empty seat next to Kat with his own face that said he was going to gobble her up and spit out the bones only to crunch them into dust. "Ekaterina." He said so smugly. And suddenly Tatia had never seen Kat so fearful and helpless.

"Oh no!" Tatia protested, grabbing Kat's arm for some reassurance. "You're sitting with me!"

" _Actually_ ," Bastian smoothly grabbed Kat's other arm in an even firmer hold. _"_ _You're_ sitting with _me_." He told the both of them but gave Klaus a challenge through his eyes. "I rather like having one of my consolation prizes within my vicinity. Keeps me at ease, don't you think?"

Kat now wondering how she could find Mister Unstable the lesser of two evils gave in. "Right..."

Tatia nearly growled in frustration as she moved herself over to now occupy the seat that Kat had previously been sitting in. Not bothering to hide the little shove she sent to Klaus' shoulder as she sat down, dramatically huffing. The seating arrangement on the plane was now as followed: Kol at the window seat on the left with Rebekah at the isle seat. Bastian across from them on the right with Kat trapped inward. Tatia behind Kol sitting directly next to Klaus. Davina in the isle seat on the right with Elijah behind Kat. It was going to be a _long_ ride.

Tatia was inconveniently struck with an itch. Sneaking a peek at her new seating partner, the girl groaned internally at having to ask _him_ for something. "You draw?" Tatia uncertainly forced herself to feign kindness into her voice as she saw the notepad on his lap, while he sketched with his charcoal pencil.

"I create." He grunted, seeming to have no tolerance for _"_ _the charade"_ as he had come to think of her as. Why, Tatia had know idea but she was getting sick and tired of being the naïve child in this power play.

Tatia didn't even try and hide her obvious distaste for him this time. "May I borrow a piece of paper?"

He finally set down his pencil and held an amused expression with a raised eyebrow. "Come again?" Klaus asked innocently though how a beast like him could be innocent, Tatia didn't know.

"May I have a piece of paper, _please_?" Tatia ground out with her mouth clenched tight in a faux smile.

The blond dimpled man just chuckled before tearing a piece out of his sketch book. "Might as well, it's not like you'll be of anymore use for much longer. I hope you use it wisely. Last words and all can come out a bit rushed. Wouldn't want you to say something unworthy of your small and insignificant history." He smirked at her with triumph.

 _Dick._ Scoffing, Tatia snatched the paper from his hand and began to write on the paper. "Speaking of _insignificant_ ," Tatia bluffed, she actually found his art uncharacteristically life like and the most breathtakingly beautiful landscape she could have imagined. Not that he needed to know that. "What makes that place so special?"

Klaus felt he might as well humor the little rouse. It's not like he had any intention of letting Elena live for creating a more than similar replica of the woman who captured his intrigue. "What makes your scripture so special?" He taunted back.

Tatia narrowed her eyes. "Curiosity killed the cat."

Klaus paused for a second seeing the opening. " _Doesn't it though?_ " He said, grinningly indicating with his eyes to the tense Kat.

Looking away with a calm demeanor, Tatia went back to writing on her paper. "Threaten my family again...and I'll kill you."

Klaus leaned in to whisper venomously in Tatia's ear. "Remember Love, you may like to win but I _always_ win." Suddenly he was stopped by what she had been writing on her paper. "What's this?" Now completely thrown off by what was before his eyes.

Grabbing the paper out of her grasp, Tatia was none too happy. "Hey!"

Digesting it intently, Klaus read what was on the paper. Moving his deadly eyes back to her, he glared back. "Do you know what this means?"

Tatia rolled her eyes. "It's just some silly little poem my parents used to sing to me when I was stressed as a kid. I don't even know what it means." She crossed her arms in a huff. "It helps me when I write it down."

Klaus studied the parchment some more. He'd be amazed to say that this figment of one of his ghost's had any knowledge of a language only spoken by some of the villagers around his area but the fact that she was lying about it made him unsteady. That's something that Klaus hates to be. Though she was lying about how her parents would tell her the poem she wasn't lying about how it calms her down or how she couldn't even fathom what the meaning was. It was a dead and old language, one that hadn't been spoken for years. He'd have to consolidate with his family on this issue but... "The translation is simple." He told her calmly. " _They run with the pool of the water eyes questing for their right. Under the stars the heat will consume the one who chants the other who talks to blood pool. The sun will be born and all will have died down. And onward to love they go."_ Klaus' eyebrows furrowed with peculiarity.

"What?" Tatia asked never once really knowing what the song means saw his hesitation at some of what he was reading.

"The words _pool_ and _sun_ , in this language pool can also be mistaken or switched out for pull. Identical to the diction of sun and son. That itself can change the whole of this song completely." Klaus told her not exactly grateful for this bit of information bestowed upon him.

"What's the language?" Tatia wondered aloud.

Breaking his trance, Klaus folded the paper and stuffed it on the inner pocket of his jacket. "Before your time, I'm afraid." Klaus smirked. "I think I shall hold this for safe keeping."

Tatia pouted and went to staring out the window. Not noticing the distressed signal that Kol, Rebekah, and Elijah were throwing at Klaus as the airplane descended.

* * *

While Hemming was supposed to be waiting for Kem and Orion to finish the location spell, the young (or old soul he presumed in his case) man sat on the floor of the basement and just watched their latest finds. He was both deeply intrigued and disgusted by the two teens before him. While Kem had insisted that the Petrova lined girl find her own way back, Orion argued that they would need to pull out all the stops if they were to have their plan run smoothly. And even if Hemming wasn't against the idea of allowing such bumps in the road to be kept under their supervision it's not as if Hemming was jumping for joy.

The girl was an astonishment. He's surprised that Kem had wanted her to fend for herself in the first place but perhaps that was the way of his kind or maybe his unconditional responsibilities hadn't caught up with the witch yet. Hemming could tell that the sorcerer was just as amazed as the rest of them at the likeliness of their targets being similar to these children. For all it's worth, the girl probably was every bit as Kem as she seems to display with Hemming's ex-lover's shadow child... and then their was the boy.

With every bit the the female offspring held the features of her mother, the male displayed only mirror characteristics of himself. There _were_ some differences. Those big brown doe eyes were a dead giveaway but nothing else seemed to standout. Granted Hemming had yet to get a feel for the younger man's personality and yet he _knew_ that he'd be met with one that he wasn't all that prepared for. Hemming wasn't going to like this child. He's going to look the part of the mighty beast but hold the conduct of an empathetic soul. With the girl, from what the stories have told, Nadia was a glimmer of what Kem's desire had become: Katherine Pierce, ruthless, heartless, selfish, and greedy.

No, Nadia was a mere replica of a split personality of the doppelganger. Kem would even argue with him that she's her own person, because in his eyes Katherine Pierce doesn't exist, so the woman that Nadia imitates is a farce to begin with. Hemming laughs at that analogy. If Katherine Pierce is a guise then are the deceased she used and sacrifices also playing dead and are the (exaggerated surely but Hemming always wondered from his experience with the Original Doppelganger) hundreds upon thousands of lovers she took just pretending that they had been with her? Hemming is none too sure.

Watching the children breathe in and out while unconscious, Hemming decided that when this was all over he would do better. Maybe this time not just for himself.

* * *

" _ **AAHH!**_ " Amara woke with a blood curling scream only to find Elena rushing to her aid.

"Amara, Amara," Elena tried to calm her younger sister down soothingly. "It's me, it's Elena."

Hyperventilating heavily, Amara did the best she could to bring her heart rate back to normal. "Elena?" Her sister nodded furiously. It was then that Amara noticed the two other members to their little party. "Elena we _need_ to get out of here." She whispered as urgently as she could.

"Forget that." Elias spoke. "You're much more of an asset here with us."

"No you don't understand," Amara tried to explain. "I..." Suddenly, what had plagued her mind beforehand had slipped away like rain water upon leaves.

Louis threw some more appropriate clothes at her other than her costume. How he obtained such things she was too afraid to ask. "Get dressed. We need to move." He commanded before both him and Elias took their leave.

Doing as she was told, Amara drew within herself trying to remember what it was that she had been struck with grief earlier. Deciding to shrug it off, Amara couldn't help but feel little whispers in the back of her mind telling her that she was going the wrong way.

* * *

Getting back on ground, Bastian watched as the two girls he was to keep in his hold until he met up with the rest of his pack, whispered to one another. Bastian was not startled when both Klaus and Elijah came to trot beside him.

"Elijah, don't you think it rude of our host to take us on a wild goose chase and not divulge the details of where he conceives we are going?" Klaus mused ever so condescendingly.

"You are quite right, Niklaus," Elijah agreed with only the slightest amount of hesitation. "It would seem our young guide may be in a bit of a conundrum as to where our ending point is as well."

Bastian grunted. "I know where I'm going." He glared to the left at the two who should be beneath him. "I also know when I'm being taken as a fool."

"Well pardon me for being forthright," Klaus spoke with venom. "It just seems that with all your talk of keeping these _mirages_ safe," He referred to the girls. "You appear to have the audacity to tell them where we are headed and not us, the ones you should _really_ be on the lookout for."

Bastian smirked, catching the Hybrid in a fault. "I didn't tell them where we headed. They just know the way."

Elijah raised an eyebrow at this. "Perhaps I missed a conversation during the plane ride but exactly how is that possible?"

Bastian wasn't sure what he could and couldn't tell to the Mikaelson family. Not that he wanted to anyway, he shouldn't even be wasting his time with them. However, Kol mentioned something that may lead to Bastian's benefit in the near future and if there was anything Bastian was, it was a bastard through and through. "The pull of the Petrova's," Bastian rolled his eyes at Klaus's less than secretive scoff and Elijah's obvious distaste written on his face. "Is something that inadvertently happens and usually is at it's strongest in times of great dissemblance. Why do you think Katherine Pierce chose to wait so long to reveal herself to her Doppelganger?" Bastian didn't miss the quick glance over her shoulder that one of the Petrova girls threw, no doubt it was Kat but the fact that she sent the look to Elijah really had Bastian chuckling on the inside. This could be put to great use. "It wasn't that the Salvatores were back in town or that you were so close to catching her in your little game of cat and mouse. She had her Doppelganger's whereabouts the moment Isobel spawned her, you can be sure of that. Pierce had her pegged the second she could." Bastian the both of them. "It was _time_. And in battle timing is everything."

Klaus was intrigued by this statement. "Are you a man of war, Bastian?"

Bastian waited a beat to answer. Truly no one had ever asked him such a question because it was something that others just always expected. He was unlike his brethren, in that he didn't have a goal in mind such as Louis and he didn't do it just to find purpose like Elias. He just liked it. The thrill of the kill. The obscenity of it all and how everything could fall out of place just because he could make it so. Blood was something he reveled in. Finally Bastian answered back. "I am a man of destruction, death, disturbance in tranquility, disillusion, and chaos. War is just an added bonus."

And for once since this journey began, Klaus and Bastian shared a small devilish smile.

* * *

Enzo and Caroline walked through the market square as the town was getting ready for the Founder's Ball.

"What do you think?" Caroline held out a tussle of flowers to the one guy who seemed to hide his best intentions with a mask of self worth. "Peonies or lilacs?" the blond vampire said cheerfully.

Enzo resisted the urge to roll his eyes, deciding to continue strolling down the street instead as Caroline paid for both hurriedly. Once she caught up, Enzo tried not to stare as she breathed in the scent of the flower bouquet. "I don't see why you bring me with you to these things." He told her, choosing to look away from the girl's strange fascination. "I couldn't tell a lily bud from a crumpet."

Caroline hummed rearranging the flowers to how she wanted to see them on the guest tables. "What is a crumpet anyway?"

Enzo sighed, checking his phone for the millionth time today, it did not go unnoticed by Caroline. "So...who you going to bring?" Caroline singsonged as they stopped along the square. Enzo lazily leaned on one of the displays that the founder's committee set up in leading up to the ball.

"Gorgeous, what made you think that balls were my scene?" Enzo panderized, knowing full well that she knew he knew that once she gave him that pouting face he'd (begrudgingly) be forced into going. It was inevitable.

Caroline smiled innocently, though with the time of knowing her Enzo was certain that she was anything but with that Barbie girl way of hers. "I just figured after years worth of solitude, you might want to, oh I don't know, _get to know people_."

Enzo chuckled with no heart. "Yes, well correct me if I'm wrong Gorgeous, but the last time I got to know someone your dearly beloved Stefan got in the way and I had to trick her to stay away from this life and leave town."

Caroline's face faltered a little at the mention of Sarah. "That's _not_ what I meant."

Enzo's dry laugh was full of sarcasm as was his nature. "Sure it is!" Looking deeply at the girl who seemed to give him hope again, Enzo became serious. "When are you going to learn, Caroline? The children born out of blood and destined for damnation don't get there happy endings. We were whelped out of a torturous existence only to have ourselves become our own masochists, fighting the hunger to lay waste to others, making us the torturers once more. It's a deadly wheel and on and on it spins." He sighed deeply. "We never get what we want."

This left a bad taste in Caroline's mouth. Her face scrunched in disagreement but she could understand where he's coming from. "That's not the way _I_ see it."

Enzo smiled kindly this time. "Well you _are_ the exception, aren't you?" Getting serious again, he felt the small smile slip from his face as he watched the permanently 17 year old hum to herself. "You're going to have to leave this place soon." He stated. Avoiding his gaze, she held a frown as she kept rearranging. "I think we can both agree that you're not getting any older. You can't have it all Caroline, the boyfriend, the friends, the place where you grew up. Remember, we don't get happy endings."

"Yeah, well," Caroline huffed with frustration written all over her body. "some of us try and fight to deserve it!" Looking down at the phone in his hand, she saw as a message lit it up. Upon seeing the screen, Caroline noted his background picture was one of Sarah taking a picture, unaware of her own being taken. "You should really delete that." She motioned to his phone. " _We don't get happy endings._ " she told him before stomping off.

"And where are you going?!" Enzo yelled after her, not bothering to want to deal with an already pissed off blond angel of death.

"To get ready! Don't wait up!" Caroline yelled back, choosing not to turn around. She was too angry with him to even stand to be next to the Brit, right now.

Letting out an angry grunt, Enzo rubbed the back of his neck with one hand as he noticed a message on his phone. Opening up the chat app, Enzo smirked into it.

 _TheOGTribrid:_ _I'm on my way :)_

Carefully thinking about what Caroline had said, Enzo moved to his pictures and settings and deleted Sarah's presence. Moving back to the conversation, he typed back.

 _AdrinkonBourbonStrt:_ _Actually, I've got a better idea..._

* * *

As Nina and Jeremy made it into Covington's town center, Nina couldn't help but notice that Jeremy was on a high of adrenaline. "He couldn't have gotten far." Nina stated to the frantic father as they walked through the blissfully unaware citizens.

"Obviously you don't know my son." Jeremy huffed, trying to manage his way through these people. "One time we lost him on Halloween. Want to know where he ended up? A warehouse in California! He was 7 and when we asked him how he got there he said he just walked." Jeremy explained. "I'm not saying that he's not gifted for a seer but..." Jeremy was at a loss of words for a second. "He's not ready to take on the world."

Nina nodded in agreement. "Are any of us are?"

Jeremy watched her out of the corner of his eye. "I would think growing up with Travelers would prepare you for anything."

Nina hesitate a bit but eventually she realized that for trust to be earned, trust had to be given. "I only was taken in by the Travelers when I turned twelve. They'd been watching over me since I was born but until then I had lived with my mother and older sister."

Taking a bus route map from a little kiosk set out on the corner, Jeremy felt the pull of kindred-ship from someone dealing with being a younger sibling in this messed up world. "What happened to them?"

Nina herself was taking in some pages of a magazine, trying not to let the disappointment and agony show on her face. "We lived in the city. Single Mom addicted to coke and men and a teenage sister hopping at the first chance to leave our dump, never looking back, not even for her baby sister." Putting down the magazine and pulling the map from Jeremy's hands, she studied it noting the dumbfound face that Jeremy was giving her. "My mom worked at a sleazy motel and I never really understood her job until years later but..." Nina shook her head, trying to blur out the images she once walked in on. "It's a good thing the girls grew up when and where they did. There's more monsters about than just the supernatural, especially when you have a pretty face like ours." Jeremy could see the insinuation that she was making but didn't want to think about the life she must have endured – what Elena could have endured had things not worked out between his parents, Uncle John, and Isobel. "I never really could grasp what it was that _they_ wanted from me when waiting around from my mother. My sister, Collette, always got there just in time. Except once..." Nina took a deep breath, trying to remember what the initial conversation was about. "When Collee wasn't there to protect me anymore, my mother took notice of her boy toys taking _notice_ of me. The back of her hand was her favorite weapon but I think it was her words that hurt me the most." Getting on the bus with the other Petrova, Jeremy listened intently. Finding some seats to sit down in, Nina went on. "My mother overdosed the night she found one of her clients fondling me. Hard liquor and too much coke isn't a good combo. I sat with her all until the morning and then the Travelers came and took me in. They educated me in both supernatural and schooling experiences. The Travelers have there own little community you see, but once you leave it for good...you can't ever remember where it is. Travelers find you first not the other way around. I grew up with a Victorian vampire to ingrain lady like skills, played sports with wolf packs to build defense and strength, played pranks and took strolls for a night on the town with a vampire who could switch from all business to mad hatter in the blink of an eye, and held court with the witches to understand the politics of where everything fits in this world. My life was already set to be what they wanted me to be before I even had a say in it." Nina told him with a shrug.

Jeremy thought of how she wasn't with the Travelers now. "So what changed?"

"I fell in love with the wrong man but right person." The Doppelganger said with certainty.

Jeremy chuckled at that statement. "Seems to be a habit for your kind." He pointed out. Nina smiled in seeing the more relaxed side to the hero. "So who was the _right_ man _wrong_ person for the Travelers? A hidden away Silas Doppelganger?"

Nina shook her head. "The Silas supporters were following Markos' lead. He...he wasn't well. Once part of the high counsel, the other Travelers saw Markos as a threat when he brought up the insinuation of Silas being the answer for ultimate power. He'd been hearing of all the havoc my daughters had been causing and wished to use it to his extent. Thinking that he could get away with it had he been drunk enough on his delusion, my betrothal's father trapped Silas in another dimension mirroring The Other Side. What we didn't know is that Markos had been gaining more erratic followers during his banishment and he had convinced them of his ideas. Persuading them from his mirror world that he was 1500 year old warlock bent on restoring order, making up some lie that other Travelers couldn't stay together for very long with fear of a natural disaster."

"I get the feeling that you guys step in when there are issues in the supernatural world." Jeremy speculated. "Mystic Falls had been in trouble plenty. Why didn't you step in? Even when the whole _anti_ -Traveler thing went down."

Nina shrugged again. "Why did they perfect the Reincarnate Spell? The Travelers I used to run with love to test the limits of nature."

"Which brings us back to the question at hand." Jeremy pointed out. "Your husband...?"

Nina steeled her gaze at what she was about to say next. "My husband is an ex-Traveler, one of the most powerful in existence."

Jeremy saw the defense in her eyes. "What'd he do Nina?"

"He stole his best friend's wife."

* * *

Drix slid out into the middle of the road, feigning the deep wound in his side being the cause of his pain. It was enough to get the young couple he sensed were on their way to pull over. Most people thought they were still safe when the sun's rays were still beaming. How dare they think him less than dangerous. It was the beginning stages of dusk and the star of hope was still giving people something to believe in. Unfortunately dusk is a fox's best time to hunt; it's filled with shadows bigger than the prey.

"Oh my god!" The young girl exclaimed as she and her traveling partner got out of the truck.

"Are you okay man?!" The slightly older guy said as Drix spit up blood and had more pooling down his side and arm. The grand illusiounist that he was, was barely even trying. This was cake.

"What happened?!" The girl asked again as they tried to make him sit down on a nearby rock.

"I don't know." Drix gurgled out, making his performance worth it. "I was just taking shots of the landscape-" He cut himself off with coughing up some more ingested blood. "Sorry." He mumbled as the damned couple tried to comfort him. "Then all of the sudden, I was attacked by something."

"Oh man!" The guy seemed nervous about him and his girl being out here alone with a monster. Suckers. "We better call 911!"

Reaching his cell phone and dialing,, Drix chuckled in his head at the fact that they were definitely not from this area, otherwise they'd know that this was a dead zone ten miles back and five miles forward. "Anything?" Drix heaved with his acting abilities.

"Nothing." The poor guy looked sad.

"Mack," the girl said to the guy. Drix usually wasn't too fond of hearing his soon to be victims names. It reminded him of how when you name a pet you tended to want to keep it and become attached. Drix already had all the minions he needed in Lucifer's Army, not to mention his own personaly ability for stealing souls, why'd he need more. Still, maybe it would give him some fun for when he taunts them before ending their taboo lives. "Do you have the first aid kit in the back?"

"Yeah!" Mack exclaimed trying to find it in the trunk.

"Poor thing." The girl cooed. Drix hated coddling. "Where were you headed?"

"Nowhere, probably Pennsylvania." Drix thought on the spot on what type of state would be a good place to hide them.

The girl felt pity. Drix would kill her first. "Nowhere to go?" Drix just nodded his head. "Yeah, we got ran out of our home too."

"That place was never home Delainey." Mack huffed, bringing the kit to sit by them on the rocks.

"If you don't mind me asking," Drix made a bet with himself already. With the amount of angst and self conflict _and joy_ (the annoying kind too) these two's souls were admitting Drix would say that they were either idiots running away from home or they're cousin's escaping their families judging eyes from their obvious incestuous relationship. Judging by the unyielding similarities between the two, Drix was going to go with the second option. "What made you leave?"

The two shared a look before _Delainey_ smiled softly. "Some people just don't understand."

Drix's face turned into a cold smirk. Gotcha! "You know, in the times before this land, inbreeding wasn't too uncommon."

Whether they were shocked by how Drix found out or how he sounded less in pain and more 100% fine, he couldn't tell. Plunging his hand suddenly into Delainey's chest and squeezing her heart ever so slowly, Drix felt it fighting not to burst under pressure. Mack stood there paralyzed with fear. "You know at one point I even think Bex and Kol might have indulged in a little sin and a whole lot of temptation with one another." Drix smiled feeling her heart collapse with immense weight, but not before he started sucking in her soul. First she had been screaming using her lungs, now she was screaming using her spirituality. Severing the ties from her body and psyche was easy. It was not devouring her essence in whole that was the hard part. He felt the cool familiar breeze drop into the cavity of his own chest, burning it like the after buzz of whiskey, reawakening those who were still caged within the beast. Just as he was about to take it all in, he remembered to have the decency of self control, and stopped at last minute. Unclenching his hand, he let his hold on her now lifeless body drop to the paved road. With her bloodlood staining her porcelain skin from dripping below her crop top, arms out as if asking to be displayed on some higher power's alter, legs askew at an uncomfortable angle, and eyes open but no light shining through, Drix couldn't help but admire the sun's rays hitting this scene just right, so that her red droplets and pooling liquids glistened against the colors of fall leaves.

Turning his head slowly, Mack was still frozen with terror. Drix snapped his fingers and suddenly an echo of Delainey's dying blood curling scream was heard. Mack finally moved covering his ears, grinding his teeth with his set jaw, and shutting his eyes so tight they became red with hot tears. The corpse of Delainey slowly started moving to her feet with a devious lust proclaiming itself in her body language. "I'm full Delainey." Drix told her but she did not utter a word. "Give me something to laugh about."

Delainey lunged; Mack's blood curling scream echoed farther than thought.

* * *

 **AN2.:/ Alright! So far we've been doing a lot of building up but now it's time for the story to take the next step in its direction. Be ready for some action and some _dark_ imagery. We've already seen a hint of it with this chapter but be ready for some supernatural voodoo! Whoohoo! I brought Freya into the mix *crowds applaud at such a high risk of bringing in a character where they are hardly known in the canon series* haha I know, I know, I've got guts ;) No but seriously Freya is a challenge to write but the way I see it she's a mixture of Rebekah and Finn (the Original Finn and some of Finn in The Originals). She's getting suspicious of Hayley and I am too...Whatcha up to wolf girl? And who with? We were handed a bit of Klautia hints but mostly so far bitter resentment and mocking on Klaus' end and challenging sparks on Tatia's. Klaus was a different person wooing Tatia the first time around and even then she chose his brother. What makes you think that they're going to be instant nostalgic with one another. I mean the girl still doesn't even know who she _is_! Mwuhaha! Sorry :) Hemming is explored more with his dynamic on how he sees the result of his actions as well as Kem's (Orion will not have anything to ponder over...yet!) and how things might be when everything is through just by looking at what is. It's interesting to me that Hemming is more of a wonderer than a wanderer but maybe that's what these kids need! Amara has finally woken up with a warning. Too bad she can't remember it (Next time she won't be so lucky). She's stuck in the middle of nowhere in Virgina following the lead of two trained killers with her sister. Sounds like a regular day to me. Although did you catch what I did there at the end of her scene transition? Maybe Amara's not the sane one after all. Could something be trying to break through to you, Amara? We see some brotherly bonding elsewhere but it's very faint and subtle. Too bad Klaus and Elijah are unaware of who Bastian truly is. I wonder what it is that Kol had offered Bastian in order to make the little killer put his quest for revenge aside and work with the Original gang? Also did anyone notice where Marcel went? He disappeared at some point surely before they all got on the plane. But where did he go? Hmmm... Oh well. ENZO my baby! Welcome aboard this train wreck of a hot mess story I hope you're ready for a wild ride because it's going to be hell. Oh and Caroline welcome back great to have with us. Getting ready I see. Caroline for a ball and Enzo for a- haha _right_ well Enzo I hope you're equipped with both health and life insurance. You're going to need it! Nina shares a little of her past with Jeremy and the hunter gets a feel for where her loyalties lay. Umm, does _she_ even know the answer to that, Jer? Yeah didn't think so. Finally we see it. One of the several abilities that Drix has. Soul snatching! I hope you guys have your popcorn ready because things are about to get messy. Drix has an army _and_ Lucifer's Army. Also what do you think Drix's followers become once their souls are sucked out of them? It's about to go down! Reviews are awesome and so are you so tell me what you think!**

 **Translation time:**

 ***Hello. - Basically the first thing that Klaus said to Katherine in TVD and boy was she _scared_!**


	12. The Current Pulls Us Under

_**AN:/**_ **First off, I want to deeply apologize for not updating this thing sooner. A lot of things have recently happened in my life, that I'd rather not get into but just seemed to snowball, one after the other. One of those being that my computer, that had all of my saved upcoming chapters for this so loved story, went kaput! That still does not make it okay to deny everyone this spark of creativity. However, once I did have access to a computer again not only did I have to start from scratch (my memory muse isn't that kind to me) but I just didn't have the will to bring myself to write it. Once I did, I found myself conflicted several times over and backspacing and hating it all, just to go right back to the beginning again! For me, this chapter isn't my best work and, quiet honestly, it could have been lengthier but if I kept going it wouldn't flow quite so well and that's the main thing of this story and story telling in general, imo. IT. HAS. TO. FLOW! If it doesn't then what exactly are you doing with your writing?! Okay so nearly a year later we finally have more to 'Trova Trot! Please enjoy and tell me what you thought of this. Also plot bunnies are welcomed and I will use any that may help get the story along and in the direction I want it to go but probably add my own little twist to it (though you will be creddited for the inspiration)...Don't own Vampire Diaries or The Originals! Please review!**

* * *

Kat kept sneaking peaks over her shoulder at their captors. "Stop it." Tatia hummed out a little tune.

Whipping her head around, Kat grumbled. "Sorry." The younger sister frowned, crossing her arms in a huff.

Tatia tsked. "Kat, apologizing for something? Whatever Mr. Handsome said to you must have really gotten under your skin for someone so brave to admit defeat."

Kat sent her sister a look; pursed lips and slits for eyes of a glare, one that normally sent others at school quaking with fear but Tatia knows a great deal about her sister's façade. There is only so much bravado one can create on an identical image. Tatia only hoped that their hostage holders weren't as familiar to Kat's insecurities. "I'm **not** admitting defeat!" Kat promised, eyes ablaze, and head held high. Throwing one more glance over her shoulder, she lowered her voice to a whisper. "Not to him. **Never** to him."

This grabbed Tatia's attention. The eldest Petrova daughter had merely assumed that, before this all began, these hostage takers had the upper hand in acknowledging the girls as familiars. Even so far as to calling out Elena's name (though the Gilbert part was still a mystery)! Now, Tatia decided that a one sided familiarity may have been jumping to conclusions too hastily. After all, Kat's alter ego seemed to be just as much out for blood as the group they were running with. "Kat?" Tatia whispered cautiously. "What do you know about him?"

For a beat Kat chose not to speak, taking all the demons that haunted her dreams and reality for all her years. The sleepless nights filled with brutal images of torture, both done onto and reciprocated by her. Mirages that lurked into the form of people; that had once been but were never encountered. Emotions, that without reason, seeped into the fiber of her being, filling and consuming Kat's natural mood of a longing for nostalgia that never was. She remembered _all_ of these things. Allowing that woman long ago to lock them in the deepest corners of her mind when she was a child, had been both the easiest and scariest thing to do. Kat's very own Pandora's Box, so to speak. Yet, of all the things trying to break out, the knight behind her was by far was the easiest to embrace with an amity of sorts. That's what scared Kat. "He's someone who loved me."

* * *

Justin was accustomed to the beating heat of the summer-fall days in his own home state. New Orleans, Louisiana was something else entirely. The muggy humidity was full of moisture and sparks of electricity but even with the difference, he did notice there was something _supernatural_ in the air. The city itself had the undead (of the apparitional phantom kind) almost littering the streets from the moment he set foot into town, only to all but disappear the next once the parade ( _"a celebration for the dead"_ the passerby informed him. _"they're off having the time of their new lives in the next place!"_ ) moved ahead of the ghost and that's what gave Justin the chills that quivered in his spine.

While he hadn't been allowed to go on any of the huntings, it did not mean that his father didn't want him close. Two states away in any direction and he was allowed to follow up in his studies at his open campus boarding school. Further than that (excluding vast land mass states like California, Texas, and Florida) and his father made up some excuse about how everyone was in need of the Gilbert art work so Justin must get the opportunities to travel. The youngest Gilbert enjoyed the drive into such places and out but once they reached their hotel, Justin was basically on lock down for the rest of the trip, while his father got to take down the real action.

Needless to say, the teen had been introduced to many cultures and practices. Plus with his own lifestyle free of human arrogance of the supernatural order his mind was constantly opened to new things and possibilities. He'd come across many religions and beliefs in the celebration of the dead… but none quite had a hold like this. Justin had heard whispers of it from his father or the people Jeremy Gilbert hunted with and it still felt so strange to think real even for the supernatural community: Ancestral Magic, specifically Voodoo.

Okay, perhaps the Ancestral Magic wasn't _that_ hard for Justin to wrap his head around. After all if you have so many witches all congregating in one area for hundreds if not thousands of years, all practicing and performing magic to the best of their abilities there's definitely going to be some hocus pocus residue that's going to consecrate the land. _**Voodoo**_ though? That was some **heavy** stuff!

And Justin has heard of some pretty dark magic from his father's stories/warnings. There was Natural Magic, where everything is drawn from nature, keeping with the balance, and all that Circle of Life crap that Disney almost got right. Consequentially, if a witch uses this type of magic for the wrong reasons it might just come back to bite them in the end however, in Justin's opinion it was the low-key type of magic that you read about in storybooks with fairy godmothers and miracles. The witches that use that kind of magic often have a good handle on the order of things and are constatly seen with the most self control. There was Expression, which was deep and still the type of magic that was kind of magic, kind of not. It is often practiced by reformed witches, the ones who can't tap into their power or have lost their way with the balance, so nature rejects them. In all honesty, it's not a _bad_ type of magic per se but it _is_ unruly. Some witches find their way back and others don't. It really all just depends on the strength of the witch and their intentions but Expression almost always has cruel conclusions. Traveler's Magic is vague. From what Justin gathered it's like the "secret society" of magic. You're not born into it like Natural Magic but families will often pass it down, never willing to leave it. Nor can you tap into it with a previous knowledge of magic or with high voltage push of will, such as Expression. It's a _**learned**_ art, a valued _**skill**_ , and like riding a bike one can **never** forget it, unless you're **forced** to forget. It's an inspiration of sorts but it knows no limits. Voodoo is taking dark deadly things and lacing them with sour undertones, to do the bidding of your desires. What you achieve gives you exactly what you wish and causes others havoc. The only downside to it? The person themselves weakens greater than any other use of magic. That's why it's the young energetic witches and warlocks that dabble in it. There's fine line between a regular Voodoo master and an aging shaman practicing Expression. There has yet to be any other magic in this world, though the Heretics are still most whispered about abominations of this supernatural. So as the youngest Gilbert observes the homebodies of NOLA mingling with the tourists, Justin wonders, who's the mastermind pulling the puppeteer strings on the living and the dead?

Walking further into the heart of darkness, Justin becomes too distracted by the flame juggler and bumps into one of the most beautiful girl he's ever seen in his life.

"Oomph!"

"Sorry," Justin's mouth goes almost slack by her smile but he returns it sheepishly. "Flame juggler." He explains, pointing at the man with his thumb over his shoulder, wiping the sweat from his hands on the back of his jeans after.

She holds out her own slender finger with a giggle towards Justin, making a correct assumption. "And you're from out of town."

Justin chuckled. "How'd you figure?"

Giving an indication with her eyes, back towards the man throwing fire into the air, the blond girl clarifies. " _That's_ Harley." She grins bemusedly. "He performs on that corner every Thursday and Saturday evening, for some extra cash."

Realizing he'd lost track of time, a wash of relief overtakes Justin. "So it's Thursday."

Smiling coyly, the girl leads him on. "Or Saturday." Justin groans half playfully at his unexpected departure with sense. "Then again, maybe it _is_ Thursday, we might never know." She jokes with him some more.

Deciding to go along with it, Justin cracks a joke too. "As long as it's not Tuesday because we all know-,"

"The world ends on a Tuesday." They finished together laughing.

Curiosity getting the best of him, Justin fishes for information. "So you live around here?"

"Yep, born and raised. I'm kind of big stuff around here." She rubbed her knuckle against her jean jacket, how she could where that in such heat Justin hadn't a clue.

Justin hummed. "Then perhaps you can help me out? I'm not from around here and I think I lost someone amongst the parade. Where would the nearest station be?"

The girl seemed to be thinking something over and having an internal debate with herself. "Well, I'm supposed to catch a train out of here to meet someone but that's not for another three hours, plus it'd be safer if you went with me."

"Safer?" Justin wondered how much this girl knew.

"The French Quarter is a place you go to get lost." She warned him. "Not seek refuge." Urging him forward, she started walking. "Come on, I'll show you all of the cool places that serve to underagers. I'm Hope by the way."

"Justin."

* * *

As Brady and Billy tightened their bow ties, Charlie blew out a huff of exasperation for the ridiculousness their life had suddenly come down to. Pulling down the short, _short,_ _ **short,**_ shimmery black dress, only to glance down at it again and decide to pull it back up, so not to expose and indecent amount of cleavage, the teens were dressed for the event. Now, Charlie understood why Mr. Donovan insinuated the salad instead of the cheesy bacon fries and, for the time being, she was regretting her food choice. _Especially_ , having passed by the beautiful blond model like girl (with her perfect handsome model date) that could give even Malibu Barbie a run for her money!

Walking through the overtly happy civilians, as they made small talk and witty repertoire at this estate, with no current host, something popped into Billy's brain as Brady handed Charlie a drink and was about to take a sip of his. Using action before words, Billy smashed the beverages to the ground causing Charlie to become stunned. Unluckily for Brady, his drink was to his lips when Billy smacked it away causing the stuff to splatter all over his upper torso.

" **Dude!** "

"Billy?!"

"I'm sorry!" Billy apologized hastily.

" _ **Dude**_ , I'm soaked!" Brady glared with his normally honey blond hair and eyebrows now tinted red.

Trying to give an explanation, Billy dropped his voice to a whisper while Charlie led them to a nearby table to pat Brady dry of the sticky substance. "Remember what Marcus and Nurse Carlotta said?" The two stopped what they were doing to listen to Billy's theory. "Most of the town claimed to have blackouts probably from the food and water."

Charlie nodded in remembrance. "Right, vervain."

"Yeah," Billy reiterated. "You know, the kind of stuff that's only known suppliers were the Salvator's _and_?"

"And the Lockwoods." Charlie finished off.

"Carlotta and Marcus said that it was probably in the water though." Brady pointed out.

"Sure," Billy shrugged. "But why run the odds? Besides, we have to locate this lockout spell right? We take the risk and not only are we compromised but we end up with some very huge questions and not enough answers."

"Billy's right." Charlie confirmed. "It was bad enough that we ate the food since coming to this town. Who knows how far into this we may already be involved with these drugs? Better to play it safe, rather than sorry."

Brady let out a whine. "Ugh, but I'm thirsty!"

Grabbing him by the arm, Charlie and Billy dragged the now slightly sticky Brady around, to fish for information from the other guests.

"So do you know Tyler?" Charlie asked to the random blond couple she had seen earlier.

"Do you?" The blond pretty girl raised an eyebrow at the teens, obviously gauging their age. This set Charlie into some irritation. The couple they were talking to barely looked older than them! Almost as if they were stuck in the ambiguous age range of late juniors in high school to late sophomores in college. "Tyler graduated with us and he left Mystic Falls the moment he could. Doubt he'll make it back just because of some little tradition he hated being a part of anyway." She explained with bitterness.

This caused Charlie to furrow her brows in perplexity. That _couldn't_ be right! Matt Donovan had said that he had played football and was a friend of Tyler's. Sure, they could have been in two different grades but even then, that wouldn't come out quite right. Math had never been Charlie's strong suit but she couldn't have been that off in assuming that Tyler was around the same age as Mr. Donovan and he looked well into his middle aged years! Perhaps the couple before them seemed to think that they had never actually met Mr. Donovan before and didn't even have that little tidbit of info that they had. Either way, something was amiss but that didn't seem to surprise Charlie as she sent a quick and silent glance to the boys, to warn them of a red flag. Only Billy returned her signal however because Brady was talking football to the handsome stranger that was the girl's date.

"We were just wondering," Charlie spoke cautiously. "A friend of ours said she knew him. We're on extended vacation right now and said that we'd be stopping through this town. She mentioned we should hit up Tyler Lockwood if we need help with anything or in need of some company. We're supposed to meet back up with her, down in New Orleans."

At the mention at the city, the blond beauty cringed slightly but held her composure. "He's not here." She sighed. "Sorry. By all means though, if you see him tell him the whole town just isn't the same without him." And with that she walked over to her date and squeezed his arm.

The guy gave her a small smile, then held out his hand to Brady. "Great talking with you man."

"Yeah, you too." Brady acknowledged then clasped his hand with the guy's to shake. Except, that wasn't what happened. In an instant, smoke and the burning smell of skin was met. The blond stranger quickly brought his hand back with a gasp to cradle it. His date seemed to be shocked as well by the mere action but then narrowed her gaze at Brady. However, when Charlie tried to peer over to look at the good looking guy's hand it appeared unscathed, if almost perfect like the rest of him.

Laughing nervously, Billy spoke. "Well it was great meeting you two but uhh… we've got more sight-seeing to do!" Taking the other two by the arms, they all but ran into the mansion which was not open to guests but everyone else was outside enjoying the sun too much to either notice or care. "Okay, anyone else freaked out by that?"

"It's like his hand was scalded by the touch!" Charlie exclaimed.

Brady felt just as perplexed. "Well, I didn't feel anything, maybe…" Brady wandered off deep in thought. The other two leaned in, hoping that their friend might have some insight to what might have just occurred since it did happen to him. "Maybe he's a mutant!" the boy announced with vigor and a dopey grin on his face.

Billy looked over at Charlie, thankful that he wasn't the only one with deadpanned expression. "I take back what I said to you earlier. He is a beef. We should have brought Marcus instead."

"Nah," Charlie shook her head. "Marcus may have a few more brain cells but not by many. Brady gets hit in the head with a football, Marcus gets knocked on his ass by his skateboard. Marcus just knows how to hide it better."

"Everything's relative." Billy decided.

Choosing to ignore them, Brady saw something that fascinated him. "Woah!" crossing between his friends he got down to his knees to appreciate the center piece on the floor.

Charlie thought he might have finally lost it, as a result of the almighty stress they've been recently put under. "Uh, Brady? It's a _rug_ what's so special about it?"

"I thank God for all those times Uncle Bryan was ordered to babysit me and let me stay up past my bedtime anyway, just to finish those sci-fi mysteries on TV." He mumbled to himself in awe and hope. "Because Miss Kimber and Mister Straeuss," He turned back around to face them, as if he discovered the next world wonder. "Behind every illusion," he flipped the rug like a grand magician revealing his secret. "Is a door!" There, located on the floor, was a heavy cellar door that would most likely not have been discovered by anyone else had they not had an inkling of what they were looking for.

"I stand by my former decision, glad to have you with us Brady." Billy recanted.

"Brady, you're a genius!" Charlie told him, while giving the guy a big hug.

"That's great." A new voice clapped, causing the group to turn and face a dark figure in the shadows. Out of them stepped one of the young men, though older, that was featured in several of the many pictures placed around the abode. This could only have been the one person their search had begun with to figuring out part of their grand anomaly: Tyler Lockwood. "So Who are you and what the _hell_ are you doing near that door!?"

* * *

Scouring the town for anything suspicious, Colin thought it a bit odd that Juan Cuaderno didn't have some of his goons stationed around to keep the place safe.

As if reading his mind, Sophie elaborated. "Senor Cuaderno wouldn't want any of his men near a sacred- or damned might be the appropriate term, place. His fear and respect of the spiritual and supernatural was made all too clear in his efforts to try and negotiate a trade with us earlier."

"Can't say I blame him." Colin called back as he studied the interior of a stone house while still having an easy view of his girl in the center town. "This place, full of all that mumbo jumbo crap…somebody's gotta take caution." He spoke, finally taking one last look at the house around him and stepping out into the open.

"Did you find anything, Dear?" Sophie asked, feeling the cool air around her almost as disheartening as what could possibly lay ahead.

"Nothing. Hey! So if this place was home to the seven rings of hell why are there only six?" Colin observed, staring out at the city before them.

Sophie looked at him curiously. "Come again?"

"Would love to but maybe sometime later." He joked without missing a beat. Sophie refrained from rolling her eyes (not only was it not lady like but it would only egg him on). "No, I'm talking about the housing placement." Pointing out how each several housings were placed in a clusterous ring about the area. To someone else it would have been styled as if to allow street ways, a beneficial accident if any but Colin knew territorial lines when he saw them. "There are five houses clumped together with a sixth in the center, a path in between, big enough for walking, and then the same placement of houses the same way and so on and so forth. Six times to be exactly."

"The Devil's number, 666." Sophie whispered in amazement. For once, Colin was right surrounding them in a circular formation the town was spread out with each of the five cluster of houses being of different make, material, and size but seemingly being replicated six times. The sixth house, in the middle of those clusters, were by far the largest and probably made of the strongest looking material for while the city was perfectly preserved the homes did look worn and weary. All except for the center sixth houses.

"Yeah I got that. Except, if we're going off of that spiritual bs shouldn't there be a seventh level to this hell?" He mused. "What's more when I went inside the houses I didn't notice before but there's blood and nail marks suddenly appearing and disappearing on the walls."

That! That's what the offputness in the air was. The calming odor that wouldn't leave the air because it permeated it so but was so subtle that it gave a soothing feel to everything. It was blood and only a vampire would feel at ease with this smell. Recounting the little housing networks, Sophie did indeed only find six until a thought struck her. "What if…. The _fountain_ was…?" She trailed off as she and Colin both shared a look of utter fear and took a slow turn to face the fountain head on.

"The Fountain of Youth is the seventh level of Hell."

* * *

Nadia was no damsel in distress. She never had been and didn't plan on becoming one but as time passed with no other company but the teen in front of her, Jeremiah is what he had called himself, as they sat on the ground across from one another, she grew weary of her abilities to hone in Traveler's magic. Especially, with the unknown warlock just in the other room.

"You're pretty." Jeremiah spoke after the blatant staring he was doing to the annoyed Nadia.

The brunette girl glared at him with a calculated eye. "And you're stupid to think so."

This sparked some confusion. "No, I just meant-" Cutting him off with a glare that meant 'no funny business' Jeremiah's excuses died down. "…fine. Russian?" Apparently, he wasn't getting the message.

Sighing, Nadia thought about how fools are usually the ones with the curious nature. She'd humor him then. "Bulgarian."

Jeremiah just hummed, clearly he was allowed to internally think but she couldn't get a moments peace without being interrupted. "I think what they're after is Bulgarian too." Jeremiah whispered to her unsure exactly as to what kind of beings had captured them.

Peaking Nadia's interest, she wondered how close to home this new breath of life was breathed into her. "How well do you know them?"

"…None."

Nadia sent a smirk. "You hesitated."

"…One's a werewolf, one a warlock, that last guy… I can't figure." He said staring intently at the cracked door.

Silent for just a moment, Nadia weighed her pros and cons. Pro: this new body meant new found energy and stamina that could be reached by mere hormones. Con: she was not as powerful as she had once been and thus if she were to return to her state of vampirism she'd forever be stuck in the body of a child. Pro: she could now walk about freely, without the constant looming of a target on her back. Con: the only way she was going to attempt an escape is with the help of one little werewolf in front of her.

Sighing, Nadia could imagine that if she were to have come back from her place of peace the others, the ones of the damned proportions, were not so far behind. "Do you know where we are exactly?"

Jeremiah paused, thinking back to his own observations when he'd first arrived. "An attic I think. They can enter but we can't exit. I know. I tried."

Nadia scoffed at the ignorance of some children of the moon. "Then normal warlock the man is not." Jeremiah only raised an eyebrow to her outburst. Rolling her eyes, Nadia began to explain. "I felt it from the moment I woke up. This hex, it runs deep. Deeper than any normal magic would allow, there is something in this place that cements us to this room but only tethers them." The young teen boy nodded with an understanding.

As both of them looked upon the attic, they noted that it was filled with materials of its original occupants, often coming in pairs of four. Four beds, four dressers, four different color schemes, and Nadia would place a bet that if you were to go looking into that big walk-in closet door you'd find four different sets of clothing styles. Something, or the lack thereof, caught Nadia's eye. "Where are the pictures?" Sitting on the dresser next to each one of the beds were three picture frames. All of them empty.

* * *

Breath in. Breath out. Breath in. Breath out. In. Out. In. Out. In. Out. _**In**_. _**OUT!**_ It hurt **so** _much_! God he needed to get out! Was there an out? He couldn't remember. In fact he was struggling to remember his own name with the searing white hot pain blasting through him. " _Marcus_." He breathed as if it was his last prayer, though he'd forgotten that as well. How to pray that is. He used to know, once. It had been filled with being forced to attend a place filled with cool stone and bowing pews and his mother, God her face was so blurry, pinching him every time he drifted off from breathing so slowly and angling his body so stiffly. How his brothers, he's sure the bigger figures in his mind were his brothers, though they too were hard to make out, would snicker at his mother's attentiveness. And how sitting in front of him the clearest forms were also bowed in prayer. Four small girls with dark hair and pastel dresses were seated directly in his line of vision. One snuck a peak to send him a sweet smile. Her face was so clear. Bronze skin, doe eyes and sweet pink lips. She turned back around and he wanted to scream. They were the reason he wanted to get out. They were the reason he was _**in.**_ But where was in?

Whimpering and whispering the memory so that he could commit it for the rest of what he had of life, the boy began. "Padre nuestro que estás en los cielos santificado sea tu nombre venga tu reino hágase tu voluntad en la tierra como en el cielo danos hoy el pan de este día y perdona nuestras deudas como nosotros perdonamos nuestros deudores y no nos dejes caer en al tentación sino que líbranos del malo. Amen." A heaviness in his chest clutched, making him stop for just a second, then begin again. "Padre nuestro que…" As his own dried blood stuck sickeningly close to his body in the sweaty clothing, he gasped when some else's voice rang back out taunting him with a content laughter.

" _ **Marcus**_!"


	13. Under, Deep Under, So We Can't Scream

**AN:/ Alright we're here again! Woooo! Anyway this chapter really got me going again and I'm proud to say that the story is moving more quickly along. Let me just reiterate something real quick though because I feel as though I should. This story is told from different points of view. They're are going to be holes in certain p.o.v.'s mainly because of what they lack in knowledge or certain lies they've been told (hint hint). If someone's sense of time doesn't match up please don't see it as a big deal honestly from the gap in between my original chapters I had written out (e.i. see chapter 12 AN: for explanation) and the chapters I'm currently spitting out as new chapters the time span often escapes me. If it is too much of a flaw for anyone to handle I am not going to go back rewrite the chapter to fit an itty bitty day to day leap, however I will make use of it in another chapter so that is can be purposeful and maybe moves the story along. I did receive a guest review last update saying that the story was confusing. Heehee hee yes, it is isn't it. I did that on purpose ;) as for the surplus amount of characters...sorry not sorry, I love the characters and they all tie together to help one another out. That doesn't mean they're all going to make it though! No one is safe :D with that...**

 **Disclaimer: Don't own Vampire Diaries or Originals.**

 **On with the show!**

* * *

Under normal circumstances, Carlotta would have assumed the de Los Santos boy was skipping as he tended to do from his track record of calling in "sick". While the school nurse knew very little about the other teenagers that walked the halls of this institution, she had quite an understanding of the slack off nature of most teens. Though that in itself was to be doubted among them. Since working together to dig up information on this so called mystery, Carlotta found that Marcus was indeed a very intellectual boy and in fact, after taking a peak into his file, had opted _out_ of both skipping two grades and being placed in the gifted program. He had the IQ of a genius and the wisdom of an eight year old. The boy didn't apply himself! Whether he wanted to or not Carlotta knew it was none of her business and to push him into doing so would be overstepping her boundaries but… He had _opportunity_. A chance! Something to be of himself and he was squandering it. That's why she found him dimwitted. That and the fact that he hadn't shown up for the past several days since this little adventure began.

Strutting down the hallway with a no nonsense attitude, Carlotta parted its crowds like the sea. Everyone knew that their school nurse was third in command in the hierarchy of power there. Surpassed only by the principal and its vice. Freshmen were wary because Carlotta pressed that she never wanted to see them in her office unless they had blown chunks. Sophomores contempt for the fact that when they were required to do their volunteer hours, her office was the usual the last resort. Juniors treated her as a teacher since she rotated second semester with the gym teacher for health. Finally, seniors gave her an easy respect, mostly for the fact that senioritis would kick in and they needed notes, but also because nursing was a field that held interest and Carlotta would write recommendations, if she knew the student well enough. Right now, the students knew _very_ well to stay out of the way.

Carlotta had heard in the break room, that that Greg Kimber had been sniffing around about the Petrova girl's family. So when de Los Santos stopped showing up, she deduced that Kimber knew who the girls ran with and must have something to do with it. Plus, Carlotta never liked that weasel even if he was the nice little thing Charlie's uncle and therefore was _supposed_ to be a mutual friend, more like mutual fiend! Bracing herself for an argument the nurse thanked the Lord that she had chosen when his class was empty.

"Kimber!" She barked, breezing on through. "I've got a bone to pick with you involving one of your students! I-!" She cut her sentence short for what she was about to say, when she noticed who else was having a discreet conversation with the history teacher. Detective James Oscars was standing in the middle of the class room and, over his shoulder, Greg Kimber smirked at the little conundrum Carlotta had just gotten herself into.

"Ah, just the woman that we need, Detective Oscars, this here is Carlotta Dubois, our residential school nurse. She handles many things here. Among them, _absentees,_ perhaps she may be of assistance to your search?" If Carlotta had not held loathing for the man before, a white hot rage was now fueling her dislike even more.

"Ms. Dubois, I'm sure you've been informed about the recent attack involving the county stomping grounds. The police and I are investigating it as a targeted site area for a mass killing and will be charging the suspects with murder. That being said, what can you tell us about all the students who have been absent within these past days? Specifically, those on this list, from what my sources say, are a tight knit group of people, perhaps with the exception of one, who have all mysteriously come down with a detrimental illness at the same time." Handing her an official looking document, Carlotta read the names printed on the paper:

Tatia Petrova

Kat Petrova

Elena Petrova

Amara Petrova

Drix Anson

William Straeuss

"Along with Mr. Kimber's niece, Charlie Kimber and Marquis de Los Santos as possible accomplices, they are being looked into as our main suspects." And that's when Carlotta realized she had her work cut out for her.

* * *

Tony had taken to sitting at the edge of the barrier spell that kept them out. Switching between staring into the fire and looking through the translucent curse, the ex-Traveler wondered how he had ended up in situations that would most likely cause distraught. First it began with his wife and their forbidden romance, God he missed Nina! He only hoped that her discoveries lacked the involvement of The Disgraced Pack, as Bastian had threatened previously. Next, his thoughts wavered to the three teens he'd seen pass through the barrier, heading for the jinxed town. Charlie and Brady had been like his other children while the girls grew up together and he was surprised that Marcus hadn't been with them on this trek. What surprised him even more was the stray that they had picked up as well. Billy Straeuss had been in classes with the girls for the longest time. So much so that, had the girls not been that of epic proportions, Tony and Nina might have forgotten about him but with their paranoid nature and his constant presence both parents thought it best to have him checked out. One invite to a birthday party was all it took and a little suggestion from Tony. Only to find that he was most indefinitely human, so they never really bothered with him again. Shame, he was a good kid. He'd be the first to die, Tony thought grimly. If there was one thing that this ex-Traveler knew from firsthand experience, it was that the good and the innocent became one or all of three things: betrayed, corrupt, and dead. None of it was worth crying over.

That musing seemed to bring the Barthelow man back full circle. In the notion of whether he was ever good to begin with. He was taught that being born into the Traveler's community was an advancement to the world around you and made your name stronger. By that debate, the middle council magi's had basically conditioned them into thinking that they were the supernatural world's protectors (even above witches because Traveler's shouldn't think as themselves as witches but as _**chosen**_ , for the Traveler community had supernatural beings of all types) and, indirectly, that made the link to _good_. But as he grew up and began to explore the world around him (leaving the sanctity of the Traveler's community wasn't unheard of and you could always find your way back with your faithful allegiance but rarely did people want to break from others who could understand them), Tony got the idea that it wasn't necessarily the case, so when he began to form his own opinions and beliefs (right around the time he had brought down Elias with a single spell but he hadn't admitted to being in love with Nina yet) thing became clearer. Still, that begged the question: had he ever been _good_ or was he fooled into thinking so?

To other Travelers, he was considered corrupt. Defying your best friend's father's law that had been set forth to guarantee peace _and_ bringing hurt to said best friend, all for the selfish reason of love, tends to make you on the corrupt side. But if he never thought of himself as corrupt was he good? He certainly wasn't dead, though that could be pending on how well these next few decisions are handled. The only thing left was betrayed. So Tony made a pact with himself. If he's betrayed in this tirade of chess, he knows he's good and his opinion is just as sound as a judge. However, if he's not then he was never good to begin with. Neither of these options were at all appealing.

Danjou had moved around so that now he was sitting next to Tony. "Don't try thinking too hard, someone around here might get the idea that you're conjuring a hex." The werewolf joked.

"Yeah?" Tony questioned with a forced half-hearted laugh. "Yeah." He sighed quietly. "I could if I really wanted to."

Rolling his eyes at this, Danjou chuckled. "Woo, Mr. Bigshot Traveler Spell thinks he could take me. I'd like to see you try!"

"You sound like my wife." Tony droned.

"Yeah." Danjou confirmed with a nostalgic look in his eyes and a soft smile. "Yeah, I guess I do. Nina was always secretly a jokester."

It was then that Tony remembered that Danjou probably knew his wife better than him. Growing up in the middle cast system of the Traveler's community, Tony didn't really see nor know too much about Nina, not like the high cast did. Not the way Sophie was her teacher/best friend, or how Colin was the older brother she never had but wished for and once she got him she lovingly regretted her decision. He (thankfully) wasn't one of the little brother type figures, as Danjou clearly seemed to be and Tony didn't even _want_ to compare himself to Dante. He couldn't, he wouldn't because he _**wasn't**_. Tony Barthelow wasn't Dante Machiavelli and never had he wanted to be. Except once and it was all because of his wife. Since Nina grew up around the highest of the highest cast Travelers, more than likely the pack that Danjou had run with was still the Alpha of all the packs at the time. And with that a thought struck him!

"Hey, Danjou," Tony spoke carefully, he knew every move he was making was being watched by Lance, in loo of The Disgraced Pack. "Did Nina ever mention how she liked to play 'The Hiding Game' she and a bunch of friends made up?"

Danjou looked him straight dead on with a smug knowing smile. "Can't imagine she did. I'm a little younger than both of you, I had some friends other than her but we used to play a variation of something like that. Same idea but I'd kind of forgotten it 'til now."

Tony held his gaze. "Huh. Too bad, it would probably help pass the time."

When Danjou's smile didn't waver, Tony knew he could count on him. "Yeah I bet…" Trailing off, Danjou and the other were wolves stood abruptly and waited. Then, out of the woods, came two shadows.

"Daddy!" Rushing over, both Elena and Amara went to engulf Tony in bone crushing, wind knocking, hug and Tony reciprocated right back. Not bothering to acknowledge both Louis or Elias, the Barthelow man clung to his daughters with dear life, as all three cried into one another.

Speaking at once and not in the 'oh-I'm-a-piece-of-a-four-part-set' kind of way, Tony heard bits and pieces of what they were saying between the tears.

"Daddy at the stomping grounds-"

"-and then Billy and I ran from _Tatia_!"

"-you were talking to someone-"

"-I think Momma too!"

"-never should have trusted him!"

"-Louis said Kat could burn-"

"-Elena brought us-"

"-can't imagine!"

In the end, they both finished at the same time with sad broke smiles with tears staining their cheeks. "We missed you!"

Kissing both their foreheads with fever, Tony held them tighter. "My girls." He sighed only partly relieved but then a nagging feeling crept in. "Elena, Amara, where are Tatia and Kat?"

Detangling themselves from the hug and taking a step back, the sisters looked at one another with fear in their expressions. Slowly, Elena answered. "Daddy, who are The Mikaelsons?"

Too in shock, Tony didn't say a word. With his mouth hanging upon and a mirror look in his eyes his daughters had just recently worn five seconds before, Tony Barthelow stared at Louis Anson for…an explination? An apology? **Something!**

Louis just stared back with a dead expression and not a care in the world, though Tony thought he saw a guarded glance flicker toward Elena for a split second but he couldn't be sure. "Consider yourself lucky, there were complications."

* * *

Freya strolled into what was once Davina's room, once upon a time. She'd been in search of Marcel for some questions regarding Hayley and while the eldest Mikaelson could have gone to Cami who was specially trained for head cases and snuffing out deception, Marcel knew all the ins and outs of the French Courter and even the Bayou. There was also that name: Petrova. For all her years being held over by Daliah, Freya could feel it in the blood of her veins that it was one of the most important things in this world. That it should belong to her name, the Mikaelson name alone. When that happens Freya irritatingly finds that this kind of possessiveness has _something_ to do with her little brother. And who would know Klaus more closely than his siblings but the person he raised.

It hadn't been hard to find Marcel, whispers on the street suggested that he'd fallen out of favor with Klaus again and his latest 'mess up' (more than likely her brother being petty) had cause him to retreat to a place of hiding. Of course, Freya knows the cycle; Klaus makes a mistake (which he never admits to) Elijah turns angry and reprimands, causing Klaus to fall upon Marcel. Marcel makes a mistake Klaus becomes cruel and childish, so Marcel goes to his surrogate daughter, Davina, for reassurance. Davina makes a mistake Marcel becomes disappointed and frustrated, making Davina rebellious by plotting something nefarious with Klaus. In a way, Klaus was sort of Davina's quasi grandfather. Freya almost rolled her eyes at the thought of how outraged they'd be at such an insinuation but secretly that made her chuckle. So naturally, Freya assumed that Marcel would be with Davina even if she hardly lives here anymore, choosing to spend most of her nights with Kol.

Getting to the top of the stairs, Freya knocked once on the door. "Marcel?" Opening it swiftly, Marcel yanked her in with a distressed look. "Does Rebekah know you're this excited to see me?"

"Sorry." Marcel took a step back with breath. "You're probably the only Mikaelson that enjoys my company right now, Rebekah included." Pausing for a bit, Marcel went on. "On second thought, Kol seemed delighted to be around me before they left. Probably getting a kick out of this, the little bastard." Marcel grumbled the last part to mostly himself. Freya raised an eyebrow at his minor outburst of insubordination. It was no secret that Kol is Freya's favorite of her brothers.

While Elijah treats her as an equal and respects her to the utmost point, he still believes she hasn't seen enough to truly live life to the fullest and thus, in some ways, she is more like his _little_ sister rather than his eldest sibling. Finn has gone and passed and while he still holds a place for him, she focuses on the siblings she can spend her time with now. Ironically, with as much spite she secretly has for Klaus he **is** a hair away from being her favorite brother. As much as she misses the father she could have had, Klaus and her do get along. Often he's scaring off her dates in a protective manner (she thinks this has something to do with 'getting-it-right-this-time', as Rebekah eloquently puts it with a small endearing smile) and out of all her siblings he's the one who actually gets her sense of humor. An inkling tells her that he's craving for her attention in a manner that would have replaced Mikael's or what Mikael's approval could have been but in a way that it's her own. He wants to fall in favor with her but would never confess that either because everyone should strive for _his_ approval. Kol however, beats them all out because he's the only one in the whole family who acts like a sibling. He pokes fun at Elijah for being too serious or Klaus for being dramatic and Rebekah for being snobbish but she knows that he looks up to Elijah for wanting them to stay together and he'll follow Klaus around trying to impress him, by outshining him, and Rebekah's the only girl he will ever drop anything and everything for, other than Davina. But most of all, Kol includes her. That's all that's really needed.

"Sorry!" Marcel panics for a split second and Freya just nods in a way that tells him it's all right.

"Where'd they all head off to, again?" Freya plays the coy card. They didn't tell her. Not even Kol but she suspects he didn't because someone needs to make sure there's no threat at home…so much for that.

Marcel waved it off. "I don't _want_ to know anymore. My knowing and Klaus' ranting paranoia is what got me into this mess in the first place."

Shrugging it off, Freya let it go as she went to stand in front of Davina's newest creation of art. Furrowing her brows, Freya tried to make out the significance of the scene on the sketch pad. "Marcel?" She started, curious, for Davina's art often seemed to intertwine with a looming evil. "What's-"

Marcel waved one hand out and covered his eyes with the other. "Told you, I _don't_ want to know."

Freya's patience was wearing and she was starting to become exasperated. "Not that. This." She motioned to the sketch. "What is it?"

Marcel sighed and stepped closer. He had obviously seen it before, having visited Davina often but now it held more detail. Still, the scene in front of him made Freya think he became tired at the thought. "This is _that_. Baby Girl started this thing about a week about, Kol said she had some kind of nightmare from it." He explained.

Deciding to get a little payback, Freya grinned playfully. "Well I'm sure if Kol was with her he distracted her perfectly from the nightmares by-"

Marcel groaned at the implication. "Now there, you see? All you Mikaelsons just _love_ to see me squirm."

Freya only laughed, coolly. "So, did she tell you what it means?"

Marcel focused seriously again. Pointing to the picture, he enlightened her. "The one right there, with the crest, that's Klaus. She always draws him with a moon. Over to the side there's Kol and herself-"

Still in a playful mood, Freya reiterated. "Is that because of the heart on that figures chest?"

Marcel let out a single sarcastic laugh. "Sure. They're fighting off some shadow things. I think that's the part that gave Davina nightmares. Over there is Elijah."

"The one by the girl with two heads?" Freya questioned.

Marcel cocked his own head to the side. "Huh. Yeah that's strange."

Freya recognized something. "Those are two powerful witches."

"How'd you know?" Marcel seemed confused.

"Whenever Davina draws me into her premonitions, she puts wiggles at the ends of my hands to distinguish I'm a witch. These two have a lot more wiggles and they're bolded."

"Okay." Marcel nodded with understanding. "That one's Hope, by the guy with the weird eyes."

"Rebekah's near a hunter with a bow and another with a gun. I can't make out the rest." She admitted.

"Gotta agree with you there." Unbeknownst to them, there were rings of fire spread out among the picture. Several other figures scattered the scene: three giant monsters, three wolves ready to pounce, a two blond vampires, one dark haired one standing near the witches, a little grey fox, one star and one black diamond.

Turning away from the picture, Freya decided it was time to get down to business. "Does Hayley seem distant to you?"

Marcel raised an eyebrow. "Distant?"

"Not sure but I feel like she hasn't been all there since Hope came home." Freya said phishing for information.

"Nah, she's probably just getting back into the swing of things." Marcel suggested. "Missing her girl and all. I'll ask Hope about it." Freya smiled at that. Marcel was pretty much Hope's older brother.

"Hmm," Freya hummed in concentration as she bit the inside of her cheek and narrowed her eyes trying to clear her head. "Alright then answer me this: What's a Petrova?"

* * *

 **ANN:/ Welcome to the fun house! You having fun yet? Don't worry we're having fun, I'm telling you! Anyway so I gave Freya a bigger part and you know what? I LOVE HER! Can you tell? I wanted to explore more of the family dynamic of the Mikaelson clan and there's going to be plenty more just you wait! So a couple nuggets to think about: Why did Louis focus on Elena when he said complications? How will the girls break the news to Tony that Kat is now a vampire and how will he react. Do you like the little more backstory I threw in for Tony and Nina and a little of Danjou? Because I got lots! We even got a mention of Dante again and he WILL be appearing next chapter! What's Drix been doing abiding his time? Bastian has a trick up his sleeve to but I'm going to make it slightly more interesting than you're thinking.**

 **Little Q &A: PLEASE if you would tell me who is your favorite characters from The Vampire Diaries, The Originals, 'Trova Trot (the characters who've been newly introduced so far((or if it's this story's version of a Petrova)) and your favorite character of all (it doesn't have to be one you've picked from the others) and please briefly explain why. I'm curious as to who to give more character's drive or who should I bring into share a point of view even if it is a small one. I also want to see who I can axe off first in a way that will give meaning to the story.**

 **PLEASE REVIEW!**


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